The medical equipment rental market - Italy

1.1 Definition and scope of study

A medical device, also known as medical equipment, is defined by Regulation 2017/745/EU as "an instrument, apparatus, equipment or software intended by its manufacturer to be used for the diagnosis, prevention, control, treatment of disease, injury or other purposes".

The market can be broken down into several segments or sectors, both in terms of the purpose of the equipment and the type. Below is a distinction by category of medical device:

• Medical devices for individual use (e.g. hospital equipment, anaesthesia or respiratory equipment)
• Equipment (e.g. dental equipment);
• In vitro diagnostic medical devices - IVDs - (e.g. pregnancy tests, glucometers);
• E-Health (real-time monitoring of physiological parameters at home).

Medical devices are often rented by healthcare facilities due to high initial investment costs and the need to renew equipment frequently. The main types of equipment rented are 'durable' equipment, such as hospital beds, patient lifts, wheelchairs, respiratory assistance equipment, etc.

Currently, North America dominates the market and is expected to remain dominant till 2025. The market growth in this region is driven by the presence of a large number of service providers and high demand for technologically advanced products. Europe is the second largest market, owing mainly to increase in chronic diseases and growth in home healthcare, while Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region.

The Italian market is still limited compared to other European countries, but is expected to continue growing in the coming years, mainly due to an aging population and increasing life expectancy. The market is also quite concentrated, especially at regional level, given the high specialisation required and the prohibitive start-up costs.

The medical device rental market is strongly influenced by European and Italian regulations which, in the future, could contribute to a slowdown in growth due to the high costs that compliance imposes on companies in the sector.