Smart Pills Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

Smart Pills Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The smart pills market is expected to grow at registered CAGR of nearly 14.5% during the forecast period, 2022-2027.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unintended consequences of severe delays in the diagnosis and treatment of various diseases. According to the Commonwealth Fund 2020, COVID-19 is expected to result in a nearly 60% reduction in overall outpatient visits by the month of May 2020. Because smart pills are usually given to patients in hospitals, this was expected to have a negative impact on demand. Because hospitals and healthcare services were significantly reduced due to social distancing measures taken by governments around the world, the outbreak of COVID-19 is likely to have an impact on market growth. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact not only on the global economy but also on the functioning of general hospital care for non-COVID-19 patients in hospitals all over the world.

A smart pill is a medical device that includes a small electronic component, such as sensors, cameras, or trackers. The growing demand for minimally invasive devices that are both convenient and provide precise therapeutic treatment strategies has sparked interest in smart pill research. Insulet Omnipod, Medtronic MiniMed, and Animas OneTouch Ping are some of the products available. An insulin pump, a drug reservoir, a blood sugar monitor, and handheld management devices are all included in these systems.

A smart drug delivery pill, which is controlled by electronics, has a lot of flexibility and precision in terms of dosage, delivery location, and release rate. The pills can also be used to monitor the local GI environment, report measurements in real time, and be controlled by an operator to perform an action on demand. Wireless communication allows for the transmission of real-time information, so smart pills eliminate the need for invasive procedures. Advances in battery technology (providing longer life) and on-board memory make them useful for long-term sensing from within the body. In the future, smart pills are likely to become an important part of remote patient monitoring and telemedicine. This sort of multi-dimensional performance is impossible with conventional oral drug forms. Smart pills have revolutionized the diagnosis of gastrointestinal disorders and are likely to replace the need for conventional diagnostic techniques like endoscopy. Traditionally, an endoscopy probe is inserted into a patient’s esophagus, and subsequently, the upper and lower alimentary canal for diagnostic purposes.

Additional uses can be in the delivery of insulin. The delivery of insulin is tailored to the patient’s current blood sugar level and should be delivered on demand by the patient. Increase in research and development in this field is expected to have a positive impact on the smart pill market. In 2019, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers also developed a smart pill SOMA, or self-orienting millimeter-scale applicator, which contains the same type of insulin used in conventional kits. The pill consists of a capsule and a tiny needle, which is made from freeze-dried insulin. Once the pill is ingested, its sugar-based coating dissolves in water, releases the needle, and injects it into the stomach.

The most common application area for smart pills is capsule endoscopy. Smart pills are used to treat diseases in the GI tract such as Crohn's disease, obscure GI bleeding, celiac disease, and small bowel tumors, so capsule endoscopy is an important application area. If GI bleeding is suspected, these pills target the small bowel, which is considered the gold standard.

The traditional scopes used for colonoscopy are inconvenient for the patients. The demand for smart pills has risen as a result of this. These pills are expected to replace traditional endoscopy for certain indications, as they have revolutionized the diagnosis of gastrointestinal disorders. In 2019, the National Institutes of Health in United States had stated that advancements in capsule endoscopy are being done rapidly, and in the near future, doctors will be able to control the movement of the device with an interface application inside the body. Through this technique, they can easily inspect or diagnose any part inside the body. Thus, with the continuous advancements that are being done in the area of endoscopy and with the rising need for proper diagnosis of gastrointestinal disorders, it is expected that the market studied will have rapid growth over the forecast period.

Many organizations are also providing grants so that research and development could be conducted in the field of smart pill development. For example, in December 2020, the University College London provided GBP 150 thousand to a gut health startup company called Enteromics, which was developing smart pills. The company is developing a range of smart pills to monitor and detect chronic diseases, starting with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

North America currently dominates the smart pills market, owing to factors such as an increase in the prevalence of colorectal cancer, technological advancements in the healthcare sector, and regulatory approval of new products. All these factors are expected to provide growth opportunities for the players operating in this region.

The American Cancer Society article titled ‘Key Statistics for Colorectal Cancer’ updated in January 2021 reported that in 2021, there are an estimated 104,270 new cases of colon cancer and 45,230 new cases of rectal cancer are diagnosed in United States. The same source also reported that overall, the lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer is about 1 in 23 (4.3%) for men and 1 in 25 (4.0%) for women. Endoscopy is used extensively in the management, diagnosis, and treatment of colorectal cancer. As smart pills are more convenient to use as compared to traditional endoscopy, their use is expected to increase.

Research and development activities in the region are also expected to fuel market growth. In February 2020, Velóce Corporation is developing the SmartTab drug delivery and monitoring system, a remote-controlled ingestible capsule that contains an electronic receiver, monitor, actuator and active ingredients. Such product innovations are likely to affect the market growth in a positive manner.

The market is moderately competitive. Competition is set to intensify, as several key players are focusing on the expansion of their smart pills portfolio through acquisitions and collaborations with companies. The smart pills market is expected to open up several opportunities for new players, as well as for currently established market leaders. The major companies operating in this market include CapsoVision Inc., Medtronic PLC, OtsUnited Kingdoma Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd, etectRx Inc., and HQ Inc.

The companies in this market are involved in various strategies such as new product launches and investment in research and development activities to sustain in the highly competitive environment. For example, in December 2019, etectRx, a Florida-based company, received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration for its sensor technology, which is used in smart pills.

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