The North America near infrared (NIR) imaging market is expected to reach US$ 193.83 million by 2027 from US$ 137.73 million in 2019. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 4.5% from 2020 to 2027.
The growth of the market is attributed to driving factors such as growing number of surgical procedures, increasing number of chronic diseases, and rising number of older people. However, the shortage of skilled professionals is hampering the market growth.
The NIR imaging is noninvasive and low-cost optical technique that is being widely used for measuring O2 saturation in tissues and changes in hemoglobin volume, as well as O2 consumption in brain/muscle blood flow. The NIR light (700–1,000 nm) penetrates the superficial layers of skin, subcutaneous fat, and skull; it is either absorbed by chromophores (oxy- and deoxyhemoglobin, and myoglobin) or scattered within the tissue. It is beneficial as it offers faster resolution and is less harmful to patients.
The increasing awareness among patients about the benefits of getting a surgery conducted at an appropriate stage is driving the demand for surgical procedures. There is a a rise in the total number of surgeries, including cardiovascular, gynecological, and orthopedic surgical procedures. This is likely to drive the growth of NIR imaging market during the forecast period. According to the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), in 2017, ~17.2 million patients visited hospitals for various surgeries, including invasive and therapeutic. Further, microsurgery has been popular due to increasing chronic diseases caused by factors such as work pressure, stress, improper eating habits, heredity, and exposure to chemicals. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), cosmetic surgeries have become one of the significant factors for market growth. The ASPS also stated that a total of 1,811,740 cosmetic surgical procedures and 15,909,931 minimally invasive cosmetic procedures were performed in the US in 2018, with a 2% rise over 2017. Thus, the growing number of surgical procedures is likely to enhance the growth of the NIR imaging market during the forecast period.
The US is the worst-affected country by the outbreak of COVID-19 in North America. The country has marked the highest number of positive patients, and various healthcare facilities centers were opened only for COVID-19 patients across the country. Only a few admissions were made for patients with other chronic conditions. The pandemic has affected pharmaceutical, medical device, R&D, and other businesses in North America. There is a shortage of various diagnostic imaging devices and consumables, and the hospitals are facing difficulties in managing COVID-19 patients and patients with other illnesses. To deal with the situation, the market players are focusing on increasing the production capacities. For instance, US-based Li-Cor, Inc. has accelerated its production lines for NIR Western blotting systems and In-Cell Western Assay consumables that can expedite the research of COVID-19 vaccine development.
Based on product, the NIR imaging market is segmented into device and reagent. The device segment is further divided into NIR fluorescence imaging systems, and NIR fluorescence and bioluminescence imaging systems. The reagent segment is further categorized into indocyanine green (ICG) and others. The device segment held a larger share of the market in 2019 and is anticipated to register a higher CAGR during the forecast period.
Based on application, the NIR imaging market is segmented into cancer surgeries, cardiovascular surgeries, gastrointestinal surgeries, plastic/reconstructive surgeries, preclinical imaging, and others. The cancer surgeries segment held the largest share of the market in 2019 and is anticipated to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period.
Based on end user, the NIR imaging market is segmented into hospitals and clinics, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and research laboratories. The hospitals and clinics segment held the largest share of the market in 2019 and is anticipated to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period.
American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and Canadian Institute for Health Information are among the major primary and secondary sources referred to while preparing the report on the North America NIR imaging market.