An estimated 11.5 million echocardiography procedures were performed in the U.S. in 2004 at 3,155 sites, up 5% from the 10.4 million procedures performed in 2002, according to a study recently released by market research and consulting firm IMV Medical Information Division.
In addition to the utilization increase, the use of commercial contrast agents for echocardiography is becoming more widespread, with the proportion of sites using contrast increasing from 40% of sites in 2003 to 49% in 2004, according to IMV senior director of market research Lorna Young.
She noted that 12% of the surveyed sites (2,755 hospitals with more than 100 beds and 400 cardiology practices) plan to start using commercial contrast in 2005, which could lead to 61% of the sites using commercial contrast agents by the end of this year.
According to the Des Plaines, IL-based firm, half of the surveyed echo labs are improving current capabilities, either by adding new units, replacing old ones, or updating their current systems. In addition, echo sites are expanding their use of networks to transmit images to multiple locations, including within the lab and to other departments and facilities.
IMV's 2004 "Echocardiography Market Summary Report" is available with a database license or as a separate purchase. The report compares U.S. trends from the recent census with four prior echocardiography census surveys the company has conducted since 1997.
By AuntMinnie.com staff writers
July 27, 2005
Related Reading
MR clinical use expanding in U.S., April 20, 2005
AuntMinnie's IMV MarketStat #35: MRI sites having at least one power injector, April 11, 2005
CT procedure volume surges, February 4, 2005
AuntMinnie's IMV MarketStat #34: Mix of CT scanners by detector type, January 31, 2005
IMV buys AuntMinnie.com, January 4, 2005
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