Wheelchair Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Growing Number of People Suffering from Disability – Based on the data provided by the World Health Organization (WHO), it was noticed that around 1.3 billion people across the globe are living with a disability, summing up to 16% of the global population.

• Many disabilities occur from the interaction of health conditions with individuals, such as, down syndrome, depression, vertebral palsy, and others. Physical disabilities manipulate the person’s ability to function and execute certain activities. Several respective health conditions require wheelchairs so the patients can travel from one place to another with comfort.

• Rising Geriatric Population – Elderly population is more prone to receive physical disabilities across the globe, and it is estimated to drive market growth during the forecast period. The percentage of people over 60 worldwide is projected to be doubled from 12 to 22% between 2015 and 2050.

• Growing Incidences of Spinal Cord Injuries – Spinal cord    injuries can affect the functionality of legs and other parts of the body since it transmits information between the body and the brain. For instance, it was observed that between 300,000 and 500,000 people across the globe suffer from spinal cord injuries every year.

• Estimated Growth in the Utilization of Wheelchairs – It was estimated that approximately 3 million people in the United States use a wheelchair, and approximately 1 million of them are above 65. Furthermore, wheelchair users are projected to grow by nearly 1 million every year in a similar region.

Challenges

• High Cost of Wheelchair

• Depending on the quality, size, brand, and features of a wheelchair, the cost goes high. In modern wheelchairs, multiple features are installed to provide better services to the users, and this may also increase the cost of wheelchairs. Thus, the high cost of wheelchairs is estimated to restrain the growth of the market over the forecast period.
• Facing Inconsistent Technical Glitches and Faults
• Lack of access to Assistive Medical Equipment