About 2.8m patients worldwide used a home monitoring service based on equipment with integrated connectivity at the end of 2012, a report from Berg Insight reveals. The analyst firm also forecasts the number of home monitoring systems with integrated communication capabilities will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.9pc between 2011 and 2017 to reach 9.4m connections worldwide.
The number of devices with integrated cellular connectivity increased from 0.73m in 2011 to about 1.03m in 2012, and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 46.3pc to 7.1m in 2017.
The 2.8m figure comprises all patients that were using dedicated devices for remote monitoring. Patients using their own mobile phone, tablet or PC for remote monitoring are not included in this number.
“Widespread use of remote patient monitoring is still years away, but we are moving towards an age where m-health (mobile health) solutions will become part of standard care pathways,” said Lars Kurkinen, telecom analyst, Berg Insight.
“Financial incentives are now coming into place and new mandates are formed that favourably affect the adoption of m-health solutions. We believe 2013 will be a landmark year as the m-health industry shifts into a strong growth phase that will last for many years to come.”
M-health image via Shutterstock
