BOSTON, April 19,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- With every successive year, the
lines between medical devices and consumer electronics become
increasingly blurred – medtech companies seek to expand their reach
beyond patients, and consumer electronics companies have targeted
medical applications as a key focus for their wearable products.
IDTechEx's report, "Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence
2024-2034: Trends, Opportunities, and Outlook", covers this ongoing
trend in the consumer health wearables market and includes analysis
of the opportunities and roadmap for biometric monitoring.
Consumer devices battle for medical applications
A direction of travel that has been evident in the wearables
industry is the increase in health metrics monitored by
smartwatches. A key development in February
2024 was the clearance by the US regulatory body, the Food
and Drug Administration (FDA), of the Samsung Galaxy Watch app for
the assessment of sleep apnea risk. Sleep apnea is a serious sleep
disorder that has significant health implications but is often
undiagnosed. The ability to detect silent health conditions via a
consumer device has the potential to create improvements in quality
of life for a significant population of users. Upcoming consumer
electronics, particularly new form factors such as smart rings,
promise to bring even more health monitoring capabilities.
Underpinning the sleep apnea detection algorithm are optical
sensors capable of detecting the wearer's blood oxygen levels.
While the FDA clearance is significant, the truth is that consumers
have been able to check their quality of sleep for signs of sleep
apnea, including movement, respiratory rate, and blood oxygen, for
several years. The key difference is that with FDA clearance, the
devices are no longer categorized as "wellness devices", which come
with major warnings that the data generated are not intended for
medical use.
Though there are countless biometrics that can be monitored by
smartwatches and other consumer electronics, the reality is that
there are only a select few medical conditions that have the
potential to drive substantial numbers of new users to these
products. When compared to existing diagnostics or monitoring
methods, consumer electronics companies will need to prove that
comfortable and continuous monitoring provides significant benefit
over incumbent technologies, for a large enough market.
The IDTechEx report on digital health discusses opportunities
for consumer health wearables, including key value propositions and
a roadmap for wearable sensor technology segmented by key
biometrics. For additional information on the sensor technologies
required for key medical applications in consumer electronics,
please refer to the IDTechEx research report Wearable Sensors 2023
– 2033.
Medical device companies eye up the consumer market
On the other end of the spectrum, medtech companies have also
been entering the consumer market. Some products, such as the
Omron HeartGuide blood pressure monitoring smartwatch launched in
2019, have been specifically designed from the ground up as a
consumer health wearable.
However, the key health technology that is making the switch to
consumer markets comes in the form of an electronic skin patch.
Specifically, the continuous glucose monitor, a majorly disruptive
piece of health technology in the Type 1 diabetes market, has been
increasingly marketed toward consumers in recent years. These began
with niche markets, such as elite athletes competing in endurance
sports, but have shifted now to people interested in leveraging
data on their metabolism to achieve wellness goals.
Currently, Abbott's Lingo is available in the UK to help
consumers better understand their metabolism and to improve their
health. In 2024, rival Dexcom received the first FDA approval to
sell a CGM over the counter in the US. Called Stelo, the device
will be available in the summer of 2024 and marks a major first
step into the digital health for pre- and type 2 diabetes markets.
IDTechEx's report on digital health covers the intersection of the
digital health, diabetes, and consumer markets and includes a
10-year forecast for the CGM market from 2024 – 2034.
Elsewhere in digital health
The consumer health wearables narrative is only one of several
stories that IDTechEx covers in "Digital Health and Artificial
Intelligence 2024-2034: Trends, Opportunities, and Outlook".
IDTechEx also reports on the promise of telehealth and remote
patient monitoring, the increasing use of artificial intelligence
in healthcare, and a future of app-based healthcare.
To find out more about this IDTechEx report, including
downloadable sample pages, please visit
www.IDTechEx.com/digitalhealth.
For more information on the medtech and wearable technologies
discussed in this article, please visit the IDTechEx website:
www.IDTechEx.com
About IDTechEx:
IDTechEx provides trusted independent research on emerging
technologies and their markets. Since 1999, we have been
helping our clients to understand new technologies, their supply
chains, market requirements, opportunities and forecasts. For more
information, contact research@IDTechEx.com or
visit www.IDTechEx.com.
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Lucy Rogers
Sales and Marketing Administrator
press@IDTechEx.com
+44(0)1223 812300
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SOURCE IDTechEx