U.S. Markets for Neurosurgical and Neurointerventional Surgical Products

This report provides an overview of the United States (U.S.) market for neurosurgical, neurointerventional, and image-guided navigation devices including radiosurgery products. Although neurosurgery encompasses all surgical procedures performed on the nervous system—including those performed on the brain and skull, spinal cord and spinal canal, cranial and peripheral nerves, and sympathetic nerves—this report focuses on products for cranial applications only.

Traditional open procedures and the devices used to perform them have been the mainstay of neurosurgery since its inception. Today, the neurosurgical devices market is in a state of transition, as neurosurgeons are avoiding the performance of open craniotomies whenever possible; as a result, neurosurgical procedure volumes have declined and related device sales have slowed or are declining. At the same time, the number of neurointerventional procedures, which are minimally invasive, are growing rapidly, as are related device sales, with increases directly related to new developments in technologies. The image-guided navigation systems market is seeing changes as well, with a continuing movement away from traditional mechanical stereotactic devices in favor of more complex, computer-assisted technologies.

Some conditions have proven amenable to minimally invasive interventions, thereby avoiding the potentially adverse complications associated with opening a patient’s skull and manipulating delicate neural tissue. Current neurointerventional treatments are dedicated almost entirely to the treatment of stroke. As strokes affect more than 700,000 people in the U.S. each year (and many times that worldwide), the neurointerventional products market is a substantial one.

Image-guided surgical navigation systems were introduced commercially in the early 1990s and have evolved rapidly since then. Advances in miniature transmitter and sensor technologies have enabled a new generation of image guidance during the past decade. Image-guided surgical navigation systems allow a surgeon to track the location of the targeted anatomy along with the movement of surgical instruments in real-time, three-dimensional viewing. This market segment will experience a continued trend away from utilization of mechanical stereotactic devices as the standard of care for image-guided neurosurgery. Complex computer-assisted systems are replacing mechanical stereotactic systems at a rapid pace. Image-guided surgical navigation systems are utilized across a range of specialties, making it difficult to pinpoint precisely the effect of market trends on neurosurgical procedures alone. Although originally developed for neurosurgery, computer-assisted navigation systems are being utilized in increasing numbers for orthopedic surgeries, particularly hip and knee arthroplasty procedures. Many of these systems require a mere module change to switch procedure modes (rather than a duplication of the entire capital equipment at an average price per unit of $275,000). The technology associated with image-guided surgical navigation systems is in its infancy, and the potential for growth of this market segment is significant.

During the forecast period covered by this report, the market for radiosurgery systems for intracranial applications is expected to decline. The projected drop in this market segment is due to the limited number of institutions that have the procedure volumes and space requirements to justify the high cost of installing and maintaining radiosurgery systems, as well as the long life of these products—an average of seven years. Sales of maintenance contracts for existing radiosurgery systems will experience healthy growth, however, with double-digit increases expected throughout the forecast period.