PACS market on pace for growth through 2021

An aging, chronically ill population and the increasingly quick adoption of technology are contributors to the medical imaging management market's growth in the next five years, which will reach $5.78 billion by 2021, according to a Markets and Markets report.

The increase represents an annual growth rate of 6.5 percent.

The image management market includes software such as PACS and Vendor-neutral Archives (VNAs), although PACS make up by far the largest share of the market. While imaging utilization is slowing from its explosive pace around 2000, image management software isn’t experiencing the same downturn. The main culprit? Increasing digitization of healthcare.

As health systems are prodded towards EMR by government initiatives, the prospect of integrating image management with patient records is tantalizing as a way to improve physician workflow and image ordering. The increasing use of Big Data is also incentivizing adoption of image management, allowing clinicians and researchers to use vast amounts of data to aid clinical decision-making.  

These factors emphasize the value of preventative imaging, a necessity as the Baby Boomers enter old age.

An increasingly geriatric population is more susceptible to chronic conditions that use imaging for diagnosis, such as cancer or cardiovascular disease. As a result, patients 65 or older undergo imaging at two times the rate of younger people, according to data from the National Institutes of Health. All these images need to be stored somewhereand most hospital systems have moved on from film.

In addition, the shift from volume to value has prompted hospitals to strive for savings in any possible way. Implementation of a PACS system will provide savings over time and can create immediate savings if implemented correctly.

While the market growth is encouraging, some image management products have a long lifecyclepotentially reducing the expected growth. Nonetheless, the market should see steady growth for the next five years as hospitals turn toward digital image management.

As a Senior Writer for TriMed Media Group, Will covers radiology practice improvement, policy, and finance. He lives in Chicago and holds a bachelor’s degree in Life Science Communication and Global Health from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He previously worked as a media specialist for the UW School of Medicine and Public Health. Outside of work you might see him at one of the many live music venues in Chicago or walking his dog Holly around Lakeview.

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