The Middle East & Africa Teledentistry market is expected to reach US$ 104.32 million by 2027 from US$ 28.45 million in 2019. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 16.1% from 2020 to 2027.
Rising government initiatives in teledentistry market and increasing prevalence of oral diseases are expected to boost the growth of the market. However, the market growth is likely to be hindered owing to rising issues regarding dental healthcare sector.
Healthcare in Saudi Arabia has been primarily based on a model of government hospitals that provide healthcare free of cost. Dental care is also available free of cost in most of the governmental hospitals in Saudi Arabia; however, long waiting time has led to several patients seeking care in the private sector. Despite the growth of dentistry in Saudi Arabia, there are still very few areas with specialized pediatric dental care. Most of the specialists tend to be concentrated in the major towns and cities. This increases the challenge of providing high-quality pediatric dental care to every part of the Saudi Arabia. Pediatric dentistry is an intense field with the interaction of many different specialties. It is challenging to locate such multi-disciplinary care in smaller towns and almost impossible to obtain it in the remote villages of the Kingdom. In South Africa, one study found that teledentistry is a potentially more affordable solution for performing dental services in most rural areas of South Africa. The Pediatric Dentistry Department at the University of the Western Cape, South Africa, implemented an online learning platform to supplement didactic and clinical teaching. In addition, in February 2018, the UAE has collaborated with various leading US institutions and hospitals, such as Johns Hopkins Medicine, Cleveland Clinics, and Cincinnati Children’s. The partnerships have enabled countries to meet the evolving needs of a growing population and the country’s desire to be a regional medical tourism hub. The rise in research studies is anticipated to boost the growth of the market. The UAE has government bodies that have adopted various long-term initiatives under Vision 2021, which is expected to meet the sustainable growth of the healthcare sector across the country. Thus, rising government initiatives in the Middle East and African countries are driving the teledentistry market.
Growing fear of COVID-19 transmission has mandated the development of new guidelines and recommendations by health authorities. The Ministry of Health (MOH) in Saudi Arabia has responded promptly to this outbreak by adopting the guidelines and recommendations of the World Health Organization and CDC (Centre of Disease Control) available to all dental practitioners. These guidelines and recommendations are available on the MOH’s website. Moreover, the governments in these countries are putting emphasis on the use of teledentistry or virtual-based consultation in maintaining communication with patients during this pandemic, which has been reported to be quite effective. It has provided an alternative means of addressing minor orthodontic emergencies, while also making it possible to remotely monitor the progress made by patients. It has created an opportunity to advise them on patient-dependent treatment procedures, such as elastic changes. However, a lot is yet needed to be done with respect to standardization of the care provided in this manner and patient informed consent for any counseling received via teledentistry to further boost the teledentistry market.
Based on component, the Middle East & Africa teledentistry market is segmented into hardware and software and services. The software and services segment held the largest market share in 2019, and the same segment is anticipated to register the highest CAGR in the market during the forecast period.
Based on delivery mode, the Middle East & Africa teledentistry market is bifurcated into on-premise and cloud-based. The cloud-based segment held a larger market share in 2019, and the same segment is anticipated to register a higher CAGR in the market during 2020–2027.
Based on end user, the Middle East & Africa teledentistry market is segmented into patients, payers, providers, and others. In 2019, the providers segment held the largest share of the market, whereas the patients segment is anticipated to register the highest CAGR in the market from 2020 to 2027.
A few of the primary and secondary sources referred to while preparing the report on the Middle East & Africa teledentistry market are The Pediatric Dentistry Department (South Africa) and Ministry of Health (Saudi Arabia), among others.