The neurostimulation devices market was valued at more than $5 billion globally in 2014, and that number is only expected to grow, with annual increases of 12.7 percent forecasted from now until 2020, said New York City-based P&S Market Research in findings released Monday.
P&S attributes the rising market to a growing geriatric population, as well as a higher prevalence of neurological disorders. Additionally, the group cited an increased awareness of mental illness and its treatment options, and a higher demand for minimally invasive treatments.
[Also: Neurostimulation device market grows to $16.3B in 2011]
In terms of the elderly, they are "more susceptible to chronic pain and neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, and Parkinson's disease, as compared to adults," which drives growth in the neurostimulation devices market, according to the report.
The National Institutes of Health, a medical research organization, estimates that about 75 to 85 percent of older people in elderly care facilities suffer from chronic pain.
Mental disease awareness, meanwhile, was attributed to ongoing education efforts by various health institutions, both for the diseases themselves and on their available treatments. Currently, many treatments center around devices that require surgical implantation and replacement surgeries after a few years. These neurostimulation devices are designed to treat drug-resistant neurological disorders, and the awareness of them is cited in P&R's findings as a major driver of market growth.
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Not all the news for the industry was so positive. There are also a number of restraints to the growth of the industry, chief among them the availability of alternative treatments, such as drug therapies and various surgeries, procedures for treating epilepsy, and the high cost and side effects of neurostimulation devices.
The Asian market is expected to experience the fastest growth over the next several years, at a projected annual rate of 13.8 percent.
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