Market Trends of China Continuous Glucose Monitoring Devices Industry
Rising Diabetes Prevalence in China
The diabetes population in China is expected to grow by about 1.05% over the forecast period.
According to IDF Diabetes Atlas's latest estimates, an estimated 141 million adults were living with diabetes in China, which is a rise of 20% over the past two years. It has the highest number of deaths from diabetes in the Western Pacific region, at approximately 1.4 million, and the second-highest diabetes-related health expenditure in the world. More than half of adults currently living with diabetes in China are undiagnosed.
China has the world’s largest population of people with diabetes, which continues to grow with the country’s rapid urbanization. Chinese Ministry of Health has established a network of National Demonstration Areas to develop pilot projects for health promotion, detection, and control of chronic diseases. Various local government departments with country officials are responsible for overall coordination. Primary care providers promote education and self-management of health conditions through appropriate dietary changes, control of tobacco use, and physical activity, which are beneficial for diabetes control.
Continuous glucose monitoring is essential to manage highly diabetic patients. The blood glucose levels help the patients and doctors modify their diet, lifestyle, insulin therapy, and medications to help their blood sugar return to normal. With newer innovations in medical technology, CGMs these days have highly sensitive sensors that can detect every component of blood accurately close to lab results.
As a long-term strategy, China is extending efforts at health promotion, detection, and control of diabetes with academic medical centers (AMCs) and hospitals with effective primary care. AMCs are usually overcrowded with patients with simple conditions, while the primary care system is under-equipped with basic medical infrastructure and an under-qualified workforce. The State Council has encouraged health system integration by promoting a hierarchical medical system, a policy that attempts to attract more patients to primary health centers before going to AMCs.
Therefore, owing to the increasing diabetes prevalence the studied market is anticipated to witness growth over the analysis period.
The Sensors Segment holds the highest market share in the current year
The sensors segment holds the highest market share in the current year and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.04% over the forecast period.
Continuous glucose monitoring sensors use glucose oxidase to detect blood sugar levels. Glucose oxidase converts glucose to hydrogen peroxidase, which reacts with the platinum inside the sensor, producing an electrical signal to be communicated to the transmitter. Sensors are the most important part of continuous glucose monitoring. Technological advancements to improve the accuracy of the sensors are expected to drive segment growth during the forecast period.
Researchers are trying to explore alternatives to electrochemical-based glucose sensors and create more affordable, minimally invasive, and user-friendly CGM sensors. Optical measurement is a promising platform for glucose sensing. Some technologies have been reported to have high potential in continuous glucose sensing, including spectroscopy, fluorescence, holographic technology, etc. Eversense, a CGM sensor based on fluorescence sensing developed by Senseonics Company, presents a much longer lifespan in comparison with electrochemical sensors.
The Healthy China 2030 Plan, approved by the State Council and the Party’s Central Committee, puts diabetes, along with cancer, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases, in the four major non-communicable diseases to “control the prevalence and reduce the probability of early death.” The central government launched a 2017-2025 plan to control non-communicable diseases, which includes increasing the regular monitoring and self-management rate for diabetes patients from 50% to 70% by 2025. Such factors are expected to boost market growth.
