GLOBAL PORTABLE DIAGNOSTIC DEVICE MARKET ANALYSIS

Portable diagnostic devices allow the ease of diagnostic tests and encourage homecare settings

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are widely used in healthcare industry and have led to significant advancements in ICT based medical devices. Such developments will significantly reduce the office visits in the near future. Portable medical diagnostic devices enable the user to perform diagnosis at home, clinic or any remote area including a suggestion for medication and recommendation to see a doctor thereby reducing potential health risk. These devices are much cheaper than conventional diagnostic equipment used by physicians, thus reducing the cost of high-level healthcare and are much more accessible. Portable medical diagnostic devices are primarily used to transfer medical data from patients to healthcare professional in real time which could eventually reduce the spread of pandemic disease.

Rising need for early diagnosis is expected to drive the market

Need for medical diagnostic devices in remote or developing areas, where professional and expensive equipment are difficult to access, is primarily increasing the adoption of portable diagnostic device. Further, ease of access with commercial tablets & smartphones combined with provision of immediate results for laboratory analysis is also driving the global portable diagnostic devices market. Increasing private venture funding towards the development of new products and government support towards adoption of point of care device is also contributing towards growth in revenue generation in the global portable diagnostic device market.   

Portable diagnostic devices are primarily being adopted by healthcare professionals to personally administer the test to patients for epidemic diseases such as Hepatitis C. Higher efficiency and advantage of immediate results combined with ability to make timely decisions are some of the most appealing features increasing the adoption of portable diagnostic device.

Several challenges such as reducing discharge time for mobile equipment and data security were encountered in the global portable diagnostic device market. These challenges are constraining the growth of the market as most of the devices are not optimized with proper data security and safekeeping which leads to potential HIPAA violations. Also, establishing ‘Bring your own device’ (BYOD) is crucial to ensure patient safety. 

Portable diagnostic products commonly include glucose monitoring devices, blood pressure monitoring devices, bone densitometer, wireless devices (Fibits)

The global portable diagnostic devices can be segmented on the basis of product type, end-user and mode of prescription. On the basis of product type global portable diagnostic device can be segmented into glucose monitoring device, infectious disease monitoring, cardio metabolic monitoring, coagulation monitoring, hematology testing, urine analysis device, cholesterol monitoring device, drug abuse monitoring device, pregnancy & fertility monitoring, occult monitoring, tumor/ cancer monitoring and others. Based on end-user, global portable diagnostic device can be segmented into home care settings, hospitals, clinics, ambulatory & surgical center, diagnostic center and others. On the basis of mode of prescription, the global portable diagnostic device market can be segmented into over the counter and prescription based.

Globally, the demand for portable diagnostic devices is high

Based on region, the global portable medical device market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East and Africa. Europe is expected to dominate market of portable diagnostic device market due to increasing market penetration of diagnostic medical devices, and growing emphasis on minimally invasive procedures. Followed by Europe, North America is expected to gain significant market share due to presence of sophisticated healthcare infrastructure, increasing awareness of healthcare professionals and patients. The Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region for portable diagnostic device market due to improving healthcare facility and increasing prevalence of diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis and malaria among the target population. Moreover, with increasing health awareness and increasing focus on prevention, the growing trend of self-diagnosis will propel the demand for portable diagnostic devices in this region.            

Some of the major players of the market include PixCell, PT. RAFA Topaz Utama, Siemens AG, Roche Products Limited, Alere, Inc., Instrumentation Laboratory, PTS Diagnostics and Beckman Coulter, Inc. Major players are constantly working towards reducing size of the equipment and integrating extensive database to increase the feasibly of equipment.  Entry of innovative products such as point-of-care (POC) troponin test by Roche in 2015, which was aimed at introducing a new portable test for identifying suspected heart attack patients for faster diagnosis is such as example of it.

Key Development

1. Key players in the market are involved in various business strategies such as product launches and partnership, in order to expand their customer base. For instance, in February 2018, Siemens Healthineers partnered with a medical technology startup Jana Care to launch world’s first smartphone-based diagnostic platform ‘Aina’ in India. This platform will enable people to avail high quality test for chronic diseases.
2. Key companies in the market are focused on various business strategies such as collaboration and product launches, in order to expand their product portfolio. For instance, in January 2019, PTS Diagnostics and Kroger Health jointly announced the launch of CardioCheck Plus analyzers that will assist individuals who are suffering from diabetes in point-of-care blood testing.
3. Key players are involved in different business strategies such as product launch to expand product portfolio and gain competitive edge in the market. For instance, in July 2018, PixCell Medical launched the HemoScreen, which is blood testing point-of-care analyzer. HemoScreen is portable and user-friendly test device, which produces lab accurate results.