Approximately 2.8 million patients worldwide used home-based remote monitoring services from dedicated devices in 2012, a trend that will continue grow over the next few years, according to new research from analyst firm Berg Insight.
The firm forecasts that the number of home monitoring systems with integrated communication capabilities would grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.9 percent between 2011 and 2017 to reach 9.4 million connections worldwide. In addition, the number of devices with integrated cellular connectivity increased from 0.73 million in 2011 to about 1.03 million in 2012, and is projected to grow at a CAGR rate of 46.3 percent to 7.1 million in 2017.
"Widespread use of remote patient monitoring is still years away, but we are moving towards an age where mHealth solutions will become part of standard care pathways," said Lars Kurkinen, Telecom Analyst at Berg Insight, in a announcement. "Financial incentives are now coming into place and new mandates are formed that favorably affect the adoption of mHealth solutions. We believe 2013 will be a landmark year as the mHealth industry shifts into a strong growth phase that will last for many years to come."
According to Berg Insight, strong market growth in 2013 and beyond will be fueled by new developments in the mHealth industry. For example, in the U.S., readmission penalties established by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will drive hospitals to adopt telehealth solutions for monitoring post-discharge patients. In France, a new mandate on compliance monitoring will ensure that all new sleep therapy patients will be remotely monitored starting in 2013, resulting in more than 600,000 connected sleep therapy devices by 2016.
"Today cardiac rhythm management is the most important segment of connected medical devices," said Kurkinen. "However, we believe that connected sleep therapy devices will become the largest segment of connected medical devices by 2017, followed by the CRM and telehealth categories. Connectivity is at the same time gaining momentum in several other segments such as blood pressure monitoring, glucose monitoring, ECG monitoring and medication adherence."
Another recent research report predicts that remote monitoring technologies will save nearly $200 billion by managing chronic diseases in the U.S. over the next 25 years. The report cites other estimates that suggest remote monitoring can reduce the costs for caring for the elderly in rural areas by allowing seniors to live independently and spend more time at home, while reducing the need for face to-face medical consultations, by 25 percent.
To learn more:
- read the report
- read the announcement