Telemedicine revenue jumped 237 percent in five years

Telemedicine patient monitoring market revenue jumped from $4.2 billion in 2007 to $10 billion in 2012, representing a 237 percent increase, according to a Kalorama Information report, “Advanced Patient Monitoring Systems.”

“Unlike the market for systems used in hospitals, this market is more competitive and vendors are fragmented with a fair number of privately held companies,” according to a report synopsis.  

The rise in interest in telemedicine patient monitoring stems from the aging population, increasing healthcare costs, advancing technologies and cost effectiveness of patient monitoring, Kalorama researchers found.

“Unit costs will go up as older units are replaced with wireless, handheld and ambulatory devices,” Melissa Elder, Kalorama analyst and the author of the report, said in a statement. She also noted that the United States, which holds the largest share of the market, “will be the battleground for a lot of the regulatory and reimbursement challenges for these technologies.”

The report also includes updates on the global market—in particular Europe—where a struggling economy has prompted governments to look at telemedicine as a way to control costs.

More information on the Kalorama report is available here.