Preventing the spread of contaminants has become more challenging in COVID-19 era. Against this backdrop, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) sterilisation equipment market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2 per cent through 2030, says GlobalData.
GlobalData’s report, ‘Sterilization Equipment (General Surgery) – Global Market Analysis and Forecast Model (COVID-19 market impact)’,reveals that the APAC sterilisation equipment market, which accounted for more than 20 per cent of the global sterilisation equipment market in 2020, will be driven by increase in the number of hospitals.
Rohit Anand, Medical Devices Analyst at GlobalData, comments, “The number of elective surgeries and increase in COVID-19 cases could be interlinked. It is critical to sterilise medical devices used in various procedures as they could be a potential source of transmission.
Large multinationals including Getinge, Steris and 3M currently hold the majority of the market share. GlobalData expects these players to continue to dominate the sterilisation equipment market in the region.
Anand concludes, “COVID-19 transmission via medical devices can be prevented by adapting proper sterilisation techniques but the fear of surface-related disease transmission may keep patients and practitioners away from reusable devices.
“Multiple-use medical devices have a greater chance of contamination if not properly sterilized, compared to single-use devices. However, single-use devices result in a sizeable volume of plastic waste.
“Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of plastic based single-use devices such as personal protective equipment (PPE) has increased significantly. An urgent coordinated commitment approach and a robust waste management strategy is needed as single-use plastic is already one of the greatest threats to the environment.”