New first responder and training applications took off first, and next will be telemedicine and surgery
While medical augmented reality (AR) activity today stems largely from first responder trials and initial forays into training and education applications, ABI Research has predicted the market will hit an inflection point between 2018 and 2019. The market will then experience accelerated growth through expanded telemedicine and surgery use cases, including remote surgery viewings, preparations, and enhancing the operating room experience.
“Before medical AR reaches its inflection point, several key milestones need to be met,” said Michael Inouye, principal analyst at ABI Research. “Early first responder trials need to move forward to deployments. Expansion into more medical education applications will be critical, because they will ensure that AR becomes a tool that future professionals learn and can use after graduation, in the medical field and beyond. Interest for AR in surgery shows great promise but will require significant investment as well as safety trials. We expect to see this all start to take shape as early as 2017.”
Companies like Pristine (AR “see what I see” applications), Ubimax (AR software and services), and Vuzix (AR hardware), are already laying the foundation for the anticipated medical AR ramp up. And while telemedicine already uses teleconferencing to provide remote connections between medical professionals and their patients, in the coming years, it could greatly accelerate the uptake of medical augmented reality, particularly if smart glasses use cases expand, said ABI.
“Medicine, like any industry, will leverage new technologies to improve efficiencies and performance; and the move from a per-service structure for reimbursements to performance or quality of care will encourage this outreach for new technology,” concluded Inouye. “While the uptake of augmented reality might lag behind other industries, in part due to an often more rigorous vetting process, growth is certainly coming.”
