Increasing Occurrence of Spinal Cord Injuries Powering Sales of Exoskeletons
The growing prevalence of stroke and spinal cord injuries (SCIs) is fueling the surge in the demand for exoskeletons in several healthcare settings such as rehabilitation centers across the world. In the healthcare industry, exoskeletons are used for helping paralyzed patients walk. For example, as per the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center (NSCISC), in the U.S., there are around 54 cases of SCIs per one million people, or nearly 17,730 new SCI cases are reported every year.
Furthermore, in the U.S., the average number of people suffering from spinal cord injuries is 291,000, with various individual estimates falling in the range of 249,000–363,000. The surging geriatric population in several countries is also fueling the demand for exoskeletons. As per the World Population Ageing 2019 report published by the UN, the total number of people in the age bracket- 65 years or above across the world was 703 million in 2019.
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This number is predicted to rise to 1.5 billion by 2050. These devices are mainly used for providing physical strength to geriatric people. Another important factor propelling the sales of exoskeletons is the soaring healthcare expenditure in several countries. As per the World Bank Group, the total healthcare expenditure around the world was 9.0% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2007 and in 2017, this share grew to 9.8% of the GDP.
Geographically, the demand for exoskeletons is predicted to soar in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region in the future years. This will be because of the growing usage of exoskeletons in the healthcare sector and the rising incidence of disability and orthopedic diseases, on account of the rapidly increasing geriatric population in several regional countries. As aging causes the loss of bone density, which, in turn, leads to fragile bones, the surging geriatric population is massively boosting exoskeleton sales in the region.
Hence, it can be said with full confidence that the demand for exoskeletons will soar all over the world in the coming years, primarily because of the growing incidence of spinal cord injuries, stroke, and orthopedic ailments and the surging geriatric population in several countries.