India Ophthalmology Devices Market Size

India Ophthalmology Devices Market Analysis

The Indian ophthalmology devices market is expected to register a CAGR of 7.3% over the forecast period.

The COVID-19 pandemic was an unprecedented health concern that affected every sector in different ways. The WHO alerted the pandemic as a public health issue but in India, most ophthalmologists were not seeing the patients as the government imposed a nationwide lockdown during the pandemic. That is attributed to the high risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 during ophthalmic procedures. In December 2020, the MoHFW, the Government of India, released guidelines to minimize COVID-19 infection among Ophthalmologists, Ophthalmic assistants/technicians, nurses, support staff, patients, and their attendants. In addition, according to these guidelines, eye care facilities in containment zones were to remain closed, and only outside containment zone were allowed to open. This significantly impacted the demand for ophthalmic procedures and devices in the country. However, currently, as the pandemic subsided, the patient inflow in ophthalmic centres increased, and it was expected to pose a strong growth during the forecast period of the study.

Factors such as growing cataract surgeries volume, technological advancements in the field of ophthalmology, and rising geriatric population are expected to enhance the growth of the studied market during the forecast period of the study.

Ophthalmology-based diseases in India are increasing. For instance, according to an article published by the Indian Journal of Ophthalmology in May 2021, a study was conducted which showed that the crude and overall age-adjusted prevalence for any positive dry eye disease symptom was 6.5% and 6.8% in males and females respectively. Furthermore, according to an article published by the Lancet Global Health in October 2022, a study was conducted which showed the overall national prevalence of diabetic retinopathy was found to be around 12.3% in India. This showed that there is a significant and growing burden of ophthalmic diseases in India.

Furthermore, as per the 2021 statistics by the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation (MoSPI), India, the number of females and males in the elderly population is projected to reach 100.9 million and 92.9 million by 2031 respectively. Such an anticipated increase in the elderly population growth rate is also associated with th increasing number of cataract surgeries performed per year that, in turn, indicates the rising demand for ophthalmic devices in the country. For instance, in May 2022 as per the Union Helath Minister of the country, the country requires 49 lakh surgeries to clear the backlog of blindness due to cataract and 53.63 lakh surgeries are needed to clear the backlog of severe visual impairment due to cataract.

Therefore, owing to the aforementioned factors, the studied market is anticipated to witness growth over the analysis period. However, the lack of skilled professionals and the lack of awareness about ophthalmic diseases is likely to impede the market's growth.