Teleradiology Market

[183 Pages Report] The teleradiology market is expected to reach USD 22.8 billion by 2025 from USD 7.9 billion in 2020, at a CAGR of 23.5% during the forecast period of 2020 to 2025. Due to the outbreak of corona virus globally, there is a sudden rise in the demand for teleradiology services. The growth of this market is mainly attributed to the rising geriatric population and the subsequent increase in the prevalence of associated diseases, the increasing adoption of cloud-based solutions, and the benefits offered by teleradiology and a dearth of skilled radiologists. However, declining reimbursements and increasing regulatory burden in the US and data breaching of imaging report hampered market growth to an extent.

In this report, the teleradiology market is segmented on the basis of product and service, imaging technique, end user, and region.

COVID-19 Impact on the Teleradiology Market

Coronavirus has spread across 215 countries and territories and affected more than 4.4 million people, with close to 300 thousand deaths. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19 globally, medical practices of all sizes are under immense pressure, and healthcare providers need to rely on teleradiology solutions to read diagnostic reports and treat patients. Teleradiology solutions also help to improve the efficiency of diagnostic imaging by optimizing and simplifying radiology with correct reads and reduced manual errors. As the battle against COVID-19 continues, there is a growing need to make teleradiology solutions more common.

However, this industry is facing staffing, monetary, and logistics challenges as a number of radiologists are moving into the cluster of telehealth and teleradiology. In radiology, the volumes have dropped drastically due to the cancellation or postponement of elective procedures. Additionally, there are internet bandwidth issues, especially in rural hospital settings, and people living in rural areas are hesitant to accept teleradiology reports due to data breaching issues.

Teleradiology Market Dynamics

Drivers: Benefits offered by teleradiology and a dearth of skilled radiologists

Teleradiology enables the transmission of diagnostic medical images from one location to another, where it can be accessed by radiologists and physicians. It enables radiologists to provide their expertise without necessarily being at the same location as the patient. This is essential because radiologist subspecialties are few in number and typically located in metropolitan cities. The adoption of teleradiology solutions has significantly helped bridge the rural-urban disparity in many emerging countries, including India and Brazil, as well as developed economies like the US, the UK, and Germany. These solutions are more convenient and cost-effective as they eliminate the need for travel and allow radiologists to work from anywhere. A dearth of qualified radiologists has further increased the demand for teleradiology services.

Restrains: Declining reimbursements and increasing regulatory burden in the US

The US dominates the teleradiology market and accounts for more than 60% share of this market. However, from 2016 to 2018, there has been a steady decline in reimbursements and an increase in regulatory changes within the country. This has led to consolidation in the healthcare industry. The regulatory processes associated with the industry are impeding the growth of the market. For instance, in the US, the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 or PAMA sets appropriate use criteria (AUC) for advanced diagnostic imaging services provided to the beneficiaries of Medicare. According to PAMA, every healthcare professional who orders an advanced diagnostic imaging test should consult the AUC through a clinical decision support mechanism (CDSM). These developments can significantly restrain the growth of the diagnostic imaging market in the US, which, in turn, will affect the growth of the teleradiology market.

Opportunities: Adoption of artificial intelligence in teleradiology

Artificial intelligence is one of the most promising breakthroughs in the field of teleradiology. In the past 10 years, it is estimated that the number of publications on AI in radiology increased from an average of 100–150 research publications per year to 700–800 per year. Of all the major imaging modalities, the adoption of AI is higher in CT and MRI systems; likewise, based on applications, AI is majorly used in neuroradiology. Several players in this market have increased their offerings in the field of AI. For instance, in the Radiology Society of North America (RSNA) annual conference of 2018, about 104 companies exhibited AI-based technologies in the medical imaging space, of which 25 companies were first-time exhibitors. AI can help create an inbuilt system that prioritizes cases based on a protocol requirement. For example, cases of trauma and stroke can be prioritized and assigned to the radiologist’s work lists, thereby saving many lives.

Challenges: Data breach of imaging reports

Teleradiology enables the sharing of medical images to facilitate the delivery of care. However, cybersecurity measures to protect patient health information are often not implemented. There are ethical and legal obligations for healthcare providers to preserve the privacy and confidentiality of patient information, which can contain some of the most intimate information about an individual. Most clinical picture archive and communication systems (PACS) use digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) standard image format for medical images. PACS could result in significant data loss, could serve as an avenue to cause disruption through a hospital’s system, or should the information be altered or misdirected, could impede timely diagnosis and treatment, thereby challenging the growth of this market.

The software segment is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR in the teleradiology, by products and services market, in 2019

Based on product and service, the teleradiology market is segmented into teleradiology services, software, and hardware. The teleradiology services segment accounted for the largest share in 2019. The software segment is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The increasing demand for healthcare software has driven software companies to improve interoperability, enhance technical capabilities, and increase data transparency. Moreover, the COVID-19 outbreak has led to an increased need for better management of large amounts of patient data. Owing to this, many hospitals are deploying teleradiology solutions to improve the efficiency of healthcare providers and improve patient outcomes.  Moreover the software segment is further classified as RIS and PACS

The CT segment will dominate the teleradiology, by imaging technique market during the forecast period

Based on imaging technique, the teleradiology market is segmented into X-ray, computed tomography (CT), ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear imaging, fluoroscopy, and mammography. In 2019, the computed tomography segment accounted for the largest market share. Computed tomography (CT) is used in a wide range of applications, such as cardiology, oncology, neurology, and abdomen and pelvic, and spine and musculoskeletal imaging. Factors such as the growing need for effective and early diagnosis, technological advancements, and digitalization in this field are driving the growth of the teleradiology market for this segment. According to the WHO, more than 100 million CT scans are performed every year across the globe. The need to prevent exploratory surgeries and improvements in cancer diagnosis and treatment have increased the demand for CT scans over other imaging techniques.

Hospitals and clinics are the largest end users of teleradiology

Based on end users, the teleradiology market is segmented 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 for the largest share of in 2019. The large share of this segment can be attributed to the rising number of diagnostic imaging procedures performed in hospitals, the growing inclination of hospitals towards the automation and digitization of patient records, and the growing need to improve the quality of patient care. Moreover, a shortage of radiologists due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the rising adoption of advanced imaging modalities to improve workflow efficiency in hospitals are further expected to support the growth of this end-user segment.

Asia Pacific market to witness the highest growth during the forecast period

The teleradiology  is divided into five regions—North America, Europe, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa. These regions are further analyzed at the country levels. North America held the largest share of the teleradiology  market in 2019, followed by Europe and the Asia Pacific. The Asia Pacific market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Market growth in the APAC region is mainly driven by the growing awareness about the benefits of early disease diagnosis, improvements in healthcare systems, growing medical tourism market in APAC countries, increasing healthcare expenditure, and increasing government initiatives for modernizing the healthcare infrastructure.

Key Market Players

The products and services market is dominated by a few globally established players such as Philips Healthcare (Netherlands), MEDNAX Services Inc.(US), Teleradiology Solutions (India) and Carestream Health Inc. (US)

The study categorizes the teleradiology market based on product and services , imaging technique, end user, component at the regional and global level.

By Products and Services

• Teleradiology Services
• Software
  • PACS
  • RIS

By Imaging Technique

• CT
• MRI
• Ultrasound
• X-ray
• Mammography
• Nuclear Imaging
• Fluoroscopy

By End Users

• Hospitals and Clinics
• Diagnostic Imaging Center and Laboratories
• Long tem care centers, nursing homes, assisted living facilities.
• Others

Recent Developments

• In June 2020, Phillips Healthcare (Netherlands) enetered into a partnership with American  Telemedicine Association (ATA) (US) . This partnership aims to further the adoption of telehealth  in the US.
• In March 2020, USARAD Holdings Inc. (US), a teleradiology company backed by Siemens Healthineers, announced the launch of a first-of-its-kind screening program to identify patients with COVID-19.
• In April 2020, Teleradiology Solutions, a teleradiology service and solutions provider, along with the Society of Emergency Radiology and the faculty of AIIMS India, organized a webinar on Imaging COVID-19. This webinar brought together radiologists to share useful COVID-19 information and resources.
• In March 2020, USARAD Holdings Inc. (US) entered into a partnership with Medical Diagnostic Web (MDW), a blockchain-powered marketplace that provides access to hundreds of radiologists ready to provide diagnostic assistance. The new program allows providers to upload images through USARAD’s online service, 24-hours-a-day. Radiologists will be available to help either diagnose or rule out COVID-19.
• In March 2020, USARAD Holdings Inc. (US) announced a collaboration with the Nanox Imaging (Israel) to facilitate bringing Nanox’s mobile imaging system to high-risk areas, supporting preventive COVID-19 screening efforts in these locations.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):

To speak to our analyst for a discussion on the above findings, click Speak to Analyst