Executive Summary
The global teleradiology market size is expected to grow from USD 7.74 billion in 2020 to USD 25.36 billion by 2026 at a CAGR of 21.9%.
Due to the global outbreak of the coronavirus, there is a sudden increase in demand for teleradiology services. The growth of this market was largely due to an increase in the number of people with disabilities and a continuous increase in the spread of related diseases, an increase in the adoption of cloud-based solutions, and the benefits provided by teleradiology and the lack of skilled radiologists. However, declining returns, and growing regulatory burden in the US, and violations of the image report data have hampered market growth to some extent.
Coronavirus has spread to 215 countries and territories and has infected more than 4.4 million people, with an estimated 300,000 deaths. Because of the worldwide outbreak of COVID-19, treatments of all sizes are under tremendous pressure, and health care providers need to rely on teleradiology solutions to diagnose and treat patients' reports. Teleradiology solutions also help to improve the efficiency of diagnostic imaging by improving and simplifying radiology with accurate reading and reducing manually made errors. As the fight against COVID-19 continues, there is a growing need to make teleradiology solutions more common.
However, the industry is facing staffing, financial, and operational challenges as several radiologist doctors enter the field of telehealth and teleradiology. In radiology, volumes are significantly lower due to the cancellation or reversal of selected procedures. In addition, there are problems with internet bandwidth, especially in rural hospital areas, and people living in rural areas are reluctant to accept teleradiology reports due to data breach problems.
Teleradiology empowers the transfer of medical diagnostic images from one place to another, out of reach of radiologists and physicians. It enables radiologists to provide their expertise without having to be in the same position as a patient. This is important because radiologists are few and are located in major cities. The adoption of teleradiology solutions has greatly helped to close the gap between rural and urban areas in many developing countries, including India and Brazil, as well as in developed economies such as the US, UK, and Germany. These solutions are very simple and inexpensive as they eliminate the need for travel and allow radiologists to work anywhere. The shortage of trained radiologists has also increased the need for teleradiology equipment.
The US owns the teleradiology market and accounts for more than 60% of these markets. However, from 2016 to 2018, there has been a steady decline in returns and an increase in regulatory reforms within the country. This has led to the strengthening of the health care industry. Industry-related regulatory processes undermine market growth. For example, in the US, the Medicare Access to Protection Act of 2014 or PAMA sets out the appropriate use conditions (AUC) for advanced imaging diagnostic services provided by Medicare beneficiaries. According to PAMA, every health care professional who orders an advanced diagnostic test should consult the AUC through a clinical decision support system (CDSM). These changes could significantly hinder the growth of the diagnostic market in the US, which will hamper the growth of the teleradiology market.
Artificial intelligence is one of the most promising successes in the field of teleradiology. In the last 10 years, it is estimated that the number of publications in AI in radiology increased from an average of 100-150 research books per year to 700-800 per year. In all major ways of thinking, AI acceptance is high in CT and MRI programs; similarly, based on applications, AI is widely used in neuroradiology. Several players in this market have increased their offerings in the field of AI. For example, at the 2018 Radiology Society of North America (RSNA) annual conference, about 104 companies demonstrated AI-based technology in the field of medical imaging, 25 of which were the first exhibitors. AI can help create a built-in system that prioritizes cases based on protocol requirements. For example, cases of trauma and stroke can be prioritized and assigned to a radiologist's worklist, thus saving many lives.
Teleradiology makes the sharing of medical images easier in the delivery of care. However, online security measures to protect patient health information are often not used. There are ethical and legal obligations for health care providers to maintain the confidentiality and confidentiality of patient information, which may contain additional in-depth personal information. Multiple clinical image archives and communication systems (PACS) use digital imaging and medical communication (DICOM) standard image imaging for medical imaging. PACS can lead to significant data loss, may serve as a means of disrupting the hospital system, or if the information is altered or misdirected, could affect timely diagnosis and treatment, thus challenging the growth of the market.
Based on the product and service, the teleradiology market is divided into teleradiology services, software, and hardware. The teleradiology services segment had the largest share in 2020. The software segment is estimated to grow with the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The growing demand for health care software has prompted software companies to improve collaboration, improve technical skills, and increase data visibility. In addition, the outbreak of COVID-19 has led to an increasing need for better management of a larger number of patient data. As a result, many hospitals are using teleradiology solutions to improve the efficiency of health care providers and to improve patient outcomes. In addition, the software component is also classified as RIS and PACS
Based on the imaging technique, the teleradiology market is divided into X-ray, computed tomography (CT), ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear imaging, fluoroscopy, and mammography. In 2020, the computed tomography segment accounted had the largest market share. Computed tomography (CT) is used in a variety of applications, such as cardiology, oncology, neurology, abdominal and pelvic, as well as spinal and musculoskeletal imaging. Factors such as the growing need for efficient and timely diagnostics, technological advances, and digitalization in the field drive the growth of the teleradiology market of this segment. According to WHO, over 100 million CT scans are performed worldwide each year. The need to prevent diagnostic surgery and advances in cancer diagnosis and treatment have increased the need for CT scans in addition to other imaging techniques.
Based on end-users, the teleradiology market is divided into hospitals and clinics; diagnostic imaging centers and laboratories; long-term care centers, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities; and other end users. The hospitals and clinics segment accounted had the largest share in 2020. A large share of this segment can be attributed to the growing number of diagnostic procedures performed in hospitals, the growing tendency of hospitals to automate and digitize patient records, and the growing need to improve the quality of patient care. In addition, the shortage of radiologists due to the COVID-19 epidemic and the increasing acceptance of advanced imaging techniques to improve hospital efficiency is expected to support the growth of this segment of end-users.
Teleradiology is divided into five regions: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East Africa. These regions are also analyzed at the country level. North America holds the largest share in the teleradiology market in 2020, followed by Europe and the Asia Pacific. The Asia Pacific market is expected to grow with the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Market growth in the Asia Pacific region is driven mainly by growing awareness about the benefits of early diagnosis, development of health care systems, the growing medical tourism market in Asia Pacific countries, increased healthcare costs, and increased government efforts to modernize health care infrastructure.
The teleradiology market is dominated by a few global players such as Philips Healthcare (Netherlands), Teleradiology Solutions (India) MEDNAX Services Inc.(US), and Carestream Health Inc. (US).
-
Revenue Share (%), By Product & Service (2019) -
Revenue Share (%), By Imaging Technique (2019) -
Revenue Share (%), By End User (2019) -
Revenue Share (%), By Region (2019)