Market Overview

For the purposes of this study, the term "catheters, tubes, and interventional radiology (IVR) products" refers to single-use medical devices used for diagnosis or medical treatment at hospitals, clinics, inspection centers, and other healthcare facilities. The domestic medical equipment market, including catheters, tubes, and IVR products, have remained to level off or increased slightly, despite many products experiencing market shrinkages due to revised medical fees.  

The number of patients who are treated with medical equipment has almost recovered since FY2022 from the status during the pandemic. Shortages of imported products due to delayed production and transportation are also about to be resolved. On the other hand, the weaker yen and soaring production costs, stemming from skyrocketing material and transportation costs, are becoming serious problems. Some manufacturers and distributors of imported products have effectively raised prices by leaving the prices of products whose reimbursement prices fell in the June 2024 medical fee revisions unchanged. They have also raised the prices of consumables and products for which redemption prices are undetermined.
In such a situation, the domestic market for a total of 52 categories and 80 types of catheters, tubes, and IVR products is estimated at 397.045 billion yen in FY2023, a 1.1% increase from the previous fiscal year. It is expected to reach 409.318 billion yen in FY2024, a 3.1% increase from the previous fiscal year.

Noteworthy Topics

The Ablation Catheters Market

In FY2023, there were 105,833 cases of ablation treatment (percutaneous myocardial ablation) for arrhythmia, 77,843 of which were for atrial fibrillation, indicating an increase in treatment for acquired or paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. The market continues to grow due to an increase in myocardial ablation cases, including the use of costly frozen ablation balloons as well as the release of new devices, such as pulsed field ablation systems.
Along with the increased shipment of ablation catheters, the market for electrode catheters and distal-tip mobile sheath introducer sets expanded, reaching 105.322 billion yen in FY2023, a 4.5% increase year on year, and 110.277 billion yen in FY2024, a 4.7% increase year on year.

Future Outlook

Until around the year 2000, the catheter & tube and IVR product market experienced little less than 10% annual growth due to the shift from invasive surgery to noninvasive percutaneous ablation therapy. Since 2002, some major products have experienced two-digit reduction in reimbursed prices, or a change in redemption segment due to the revision of redemption prices, while there were some products that have been used more for an aging population. These factors caused the market to grow only slightly or shrink and generated polarized tendencies in products.
In the future, many products are likely to experience negative growth or growth of no more than 2%, except for value-added diagnostic catheters and ablation products. The catheter & tube and IVR product market is expected to reach 420.296 billion yen in FY2028, which is a 5.9% growth from FY2023.

Research Outline