The point-of-care testing market is set to reach $22.5 billion by 2013, up from $13.4 billion in 2008, according to latest research from independent analyst Business Insights. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.9%.

Karen Mostert, lead healthcare analyst at Business Insights comments: “Technological innovation will play a key role in the growth of the point-of-care testing POCT market. Developments are keenly anticipated in micro-fluidic and other molecular testing technologies for infectious diseases.”

The US market represents more than half of the total POCT market.  In the US, POCT products are in widespread use in the hospital, physician’s office and consumer settings. The US market continues to be responsible for much innovation in this field and is expected to grow at a higher rate than the overall market.

In Europe, the market varies from country to country, but overall growth will be constrained by healthcare cost-containment. The use of POC diagnostics is best established in Germany where, for example, coagulation self-testing by patients has been a widespread practice for over twenty years. Some catch-up growth (compared with previous years) is likely in the UK, which has had fairly slow growth for some time. In France, physicians are not allowed to carry out office-based POC testing, which reduces the size of the potential market. In Japan, the physician’s office testing market is not well developed and tests continue to be undertaken by a central laboratory.

Karen concludes: “Strong growth will be seen in all POCT sectors, with tests for cardiac markers, coagulation, and colorectal cancer showing CAGR of 15% or more. However, despite a lower CAGR of 11%, glucose monitoring will remain the largest segment, with a 77% share of the POCT market by 2013.