Market Trends of Germany Magnetic Resonance Imaging Industry
High Field MRI Segment is Expected to Hold a Significant Market Share Over the Forecast Period
The MRI systems with a field strength of 7 Tesla or higher are included in the ultra-field MRI category. These scanners can see more of the body's finer details and have quicker scan times with high sensitivity and specificity.
The ultra-field MRI segment is expected to grow during the forecast period with the increasing research advancements and the increasing adoption of ultra-field MRI systems.
Studies performed by German researchers have highlighted the advancing technology and emerging adoption of the ultra-field MRI for a better understanding of the target organs and diseases. These research studies are expected to create more awareness about the potential applications of MRI systems with ultra-high field strength, which will likely drive the segment's growth. For instance, the study published by German researchers in the Journal of Magnetic Resonance Materials in Physics, Biology and Medicine in April 2023, underlined the high potential of 14 tesla MRI systems and their future possibilities to be used in German healthcare and research. The study highlighted the fundamental understanding of how the human body works, including healthy physiology, disease processes, and aging, are likely to be made possible by research at 14 T. Further, a study published in the Journal of Magnetic Resonance Materials in Physics, Biology and Medicine in August 2022, highlighted the potential application of ultra-high-field MRI of the field strength of more than 7 Tesla for MRI-targeted biopsies in prostate cancer. The study further stated that the large field-of-view and low-flip-angle anatomical 3D imaging offered by the 7 T MRI has the potential to be used as a diagnostic tool with full strength to characterize different stages of the tumor to enable the onset and spatial distribution of metastatic spread. Thus, such studies reveal the potential strength, efficacy, and vast applications of the ultra-field MRI for the better diagnosis of chronic diseases which are expected to attract more market players to explore the technology and offer more ultra-field MRI systems. These factors are expected to tap a vast patient base and boost the segment's growth with high demand for ultra-field MRI systems.
The Ultra Field MRI is being adopted for advancing the research of magnetic imaging of the brain and other target organs for a deeper understanding of the organ's function and the underlined disease. These factors are expected to boost the demand for Ultra Field MRI systems and drive the segment's growth. For instance, in March 2023, at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, Germany, the most potent 7-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner, MAGNETOM Terra. X Impulse in Europe was formally unveiled. The advanced MRI system would offer high-performance imaging for research.
Therefore, the ultra-field MRI segment is expected to witness significant growth over the forecast period due to the abovementioned factors, including its advancing research, high efficacy, and potential to serve as an advanced diagnosis tool.
Neurology is Expected to Hold a Significant Market Share Over the Forecast Period
The neurology segment includes neurological disorders such as multiple sclerosis, brain tumor, Alzheimer's disease, dementia, and others, that MRI diagnoses. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and spine provides the tissue activities which reveal the physiological changes and assist in the diagnosis of diseases or gaining a deeper understanding of the functioning of the organ.
The neurology segment is expected to grow during the forecast period with the high burden of neurological disorders and the advancing research of using MRI to diagnose neurological diseases.
The significant burden of neurological diseases is expected to increase the demand for MRI systems to diagnose and research the disease, which is likely to boost the segment's growth. For instance, per the data published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 2021, over 21.8 individuals in every 1,000 people in Germany were reported to have Dementia in 2021. The same source stated that this number is expected to increase to 35.9 individuals per 1,000 people in Germany by 2050. Such a vast patient base of dementia in Germany is expected to increase the demand for MRI systems for diagnosis and conduct more research studies to better understand the disease development, which is expected to drive the segment's growth.
Research studies have highlighted the increasing technological advancements in MRI for neurological disease diagnosis which are expected to attract more growth opportunities for the segment. For instance, a study published in the journal NeuroImage Clinical in 2023, demonstrated the high potential of automated methods in the MR imaging data which can potentially assist physicians in diagnosing dementia and orphan diseases besides frequent syndromes such as Alzheimer's disease. Such studies can improve the diagnosis and the timely detection of sophisticated neurological diseases. These factors are expected to tap the patient base with unmet diagnosis needs and drive the segment's growth. Further, a study published in the Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience in October 2022 demonstrated that the manual metric MRI measurements enabled the diagnosis of the substantia-innominata atrophy in dementia patients with a psychiatric onset. The study stated that the MRI measurements revealed that substantia-innominata in patients with Dementia with Lewy bodies showed more atrophied than in the patients of initial mild cognitive impairment. These findings can be useful for diagnosing the psychiatric onset of dementia, which will likely increase the demand for MRI imaging for dementia and timely diagnosis and boost the segment's growth.
Therefore, the neurology segment is expected to witness significant growth over the forecast period due to the abovementioned factors, including the high burden of neurological disorders and advancing research.
