Flexible Endoscopes Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Flexible Endoscopes Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The flexible endoscopes market is expected to register a CAGR of 5.7% over the forecast period, 2022-2027.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to disruption in all business sectors and industries across the globe. Similarly, the viral outbreak has majorly affected medical activity around the world. For instance, the treatment procedures, healthcare services and other were greatly impacted. Furthermore, the supply chain of the medical devices around the world was also obstructed. In addition, the flexible endoscopes market also faced varying impacts during the worldwide lockdowns. The demand for new flexible endoscopes plummeted as there was a decrease in endoscopy services being offered at hospitals settings across the globe. Furthermore, the decrease in the services was partially due to the rise in COVID-19 related emergencies on healthcare staff. For instance, according to the article "Guidelines for Robotic Flexible Endoscopy at the Time of COVID-19", published in February 2021, endoscopic procedures were significantly reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, only urgent cases requiring endoscopies were considered during the pandemic.

In addition, certain endoscopic procedures such as gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy, and respiratory endoscopy were considered an aerosol-generating procedure for SARS-CoV-2 transmission. For instance, the American Association for Bronchology & Interventional Pulmonology (AABIP) updated recommendations for the use of flexible bronchoscopes in the COVID-19 patients. The updated recommendations suggested that bronchoscopy is an aerosol generating procedure that poses substantial risk to patients and staff. Hence, bronchoscopy was not a preferable option in the diagnosis of COVID-19 and was only considered in intubated patients if upper respiratory samples were negative. Thus, these factors led to a decline in the demand for flexible endoscopes thereby affecting the studied market during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The major factors leading to the growth of the studied market include surge in prevalence of chronic diseases of the internal body systems, advantages of flexible microscopes over other counterparts, surge in awareness and demand associated with early diagnosis of the chronic diseases. Various chronic diseases such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), stomach cancer, colon cancer, respiratory infections, respiratory tumors and others require extensive usage of endoscopes for diagnostic purposes. Thus, the rise in prevalence of these diseases leads to surge in demand for flexible endoscopes. For instance, according to American Cancer Society, Inc., about 26,380 new cases of stomach cancer (15,900 in men and 10,480 in women) are estimated to be diagnosed in the United States for the year 2022. Similarly, the number of new cases in the United States are estimated to reach 106,180 for colon cancer and 44,850 for rectal cancer in the year 2022. Furthermore, according to the American Lung Association estimates, 236,000 people in the United States were expected to be diagnosed with lung cancer in 2021. In addition, according to American College of Gastroenterology, it is thought that 10-15 percent of adults suffer from irritable bowel syndrome symptoms in the United States Thus, the high incidence and prevalence of these chronic diseases lead to surge in the demand for use of flexible endoscopes. This in turn drives the growth of the market studied.

The surge in adoption due to advantages of flexible endoscopes over other counterparts also contributes to the growth of the market studied. For instance, the most advantageous feature of optical fiber endoscope is that the surgeon can operate the lens of the endoscope to change its direction and expand the scope of application.

There has been a rise in adoption of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) as these procedures involve techniques that minimize the size and number of cuts, or incisions made on the body. Furthermore, endoscopies are minimally invasive procedures that involve orifices of the body such as the mouth. Thus, there has been a significant adoption of endoscopies for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes across the globe. This leads to surge in demand for flexible endoscopes which thereby drives the growth of the market studied.

Therefore, owing to the aforementioned factors the studied market is anticipated to witness growth over the analysis period. However, stringent regulatory requirements for the flexible endoscope are a hindrance to the market growth.

Key Market TrendsGastroscopy is Expected to Witness High Growth Over the Forecast Period

Gastroscopy involves the use of a flexible endoscope which aids in obtaining the images of the lining of these organs. The major factor that drives the growth of this segment over the forecast period includes the surge in the incidence of chronic diseases that affect the upper digestive tract. Some of these include irritable bowel syndrome, dyspepsia, constipation, gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD), stomach cancer and others. In addition, rise in the geriatric population which is more susceptible to certain forms of gastrointestinal diseases is another factor that leads to surge in demand for gastroscopy which in turn leads to rise in demand for flexible gastroscopes. For instance, according to, the American Cancer Society, Inc., stomach cancer mostly affects older people. The average age of people when they are diagnosed is about 68 years. Also, about 6 out of 10 people diagnosed with stomach cancer are over the age of 65 years.

In addition, the growth of the segment is also contributed by technological advancements in the form of new product launches. This in turn leads to a surge in demand for novel and advanced gastroscopes among physicians thereby driving the growth of the market. For instance, in the year 2021, FUJIFILM Corporation launched El-740D/S, a dual-channel endoscope. Fujifilm's EI-740D/S is the first dual-channel endoscope cleared by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in both upper and lower gastrointestinal applications. Furthermore, the product has special features incorporated by the company. For instance, The EI-740D/S was developed in close collaboration with Apollo Endosurgery, Inc., a medical technology company focused on less invasive therapies aimed at the treatment of gastrointestinal conditions. The collaboration ensured the compatibility of the endoscope with the OverStitch Endoscopic Suturing System. OverStitch enables advanced endoscopic surgery by allowing physicians to place full-thickness sutures from a flexible endoscope. Hence, these factors lead to surge in demand for flexible endoscopes which thereby drives the growth of the market studied

North America is Expected to Dominate the Flexible Endoscopes Market

North America is expected to dominate the market. This is due to the surge in prevalence of chronic diseases which require the use of flexible endoscopes. For instance, the region has high prevalence of diseases such as stomach cancer, colorectal cancer, irritable bowel syndrome and others. For instance, according to National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), studies suggest that about 12% of people in the United States have irritable bowel syndrome. Furthermore, the surge in geriatric population which is more susceptible to chronic diseases is another factor that drives the growth of market in the region. For instance, according to “2021 Senior Report” published by United Health Foundation, 16.5% population of United Sates was aged 65 years or above in the year 2021. In addition, this number is expected to reach 20% of total population by the end of the year 2050.

Other factors that drive the growth of flexible endoscope market in the region include easy availability of technologically advanced flexible endoscopes and product launches. For instance, in April 2021, Ambu Inc. received Health Canada clearance for the aScope 4 Cysto, an innovative flexible cystoscope platform for urology. Therefore, the approval for products from regulatory bodies is expected to contribute significantly to the market growth.

Therefore, owing to the aforesaid factors the growth of the studied market is anticipated in the North America Region.

Competitive Landscape

The flexible endoscopes market is competitive in nature due to the presence of several companies operating globally as well as regionally. The competitive landscape includes an analysis of a few international as well as local companies which hold the market shares and are well known. These include Olympus Corporation, ATMOS MedizinTechnik GmbH and Co. KG, Becton Dickinson and Company, Boston Scientific Corporation, FUJIFILM Corporation, EndoMed Systems GmbH., KARL STORZ SE and Co. KG, Laborie Medical, Richard Wolf GmbH and Hoya Corporation Pentax Medical, among others.

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