Global Cartilage Repair/Regeneration Market Set For Rapid Growth, To Reach Around USD 6.5 Billion By 2028

The global cartilage repair and regeneration market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.3 percent from USD 787 million in 2020 to USD 1,603 million by 2025, up from USD 787 million in 2020. The growing incidence of osteoarthritis, as well as increased financing and investments in research in this field, are driving the expansion of this market.

Impact of COVID-19 on the global cartilage repair and regeneration market
During the first half of the projection period, the COVID-19 outbreak will have an influence on the cartilage repair and regeneration market. The cartilage repair and regeneration market is predicted to fall during the first portion of the forecasted period due to statewide lockdowns, denied wound care services, and cancelled or postponed elective surgeries. However, demand for cartilage repair and regeneration products is predicted to skyrocket in the second half of the projection period.

Elective procedures are being denied (cancelled/postponed) in order to allocate or redirect scarce capacities and resources (such as hospital beds and patient care staff) to COVID-19 patient care. Moreover, to combat the increased number of positive COVID-19 cases, several countries have implemented lockdowns and curfews. Patients are unable to visit hospitals, outpatient clinics, or clinics due to the lockdowns. During the first half of the forecasted period, this temporary denial of wound care services, cancer care surgeries/therapies, and other healthcare services is expected to limit the growth of the cartilage repair and regeneration market; however, demand is expected to rise exponentially in the second half of the forecasted period. The amount of elective procedures conducted in Q1 and Q2 of 2020 was drastically lowered due to lockdowns. In the first and second quarters of 2020, sales of cartilage repair and regeneration products have decreased dramatically. In the last six months, the growth rate has dropped by 20-30% on average.

Market Dynamics for Cartilage Repair and Regeneration

Incidence of osteoarthritis is on the rise.

Osteoarthritis has become more common in recent years all around the world. According to a study undertaken by the University of North Carolina, around 1 million knee and hip replacement procedures are performed in the United States each year. The cost of osteoarthritis in the United States is 136.8 billion dollars per year. Degenerative joint illnesses, such as osteoarthritis, will impact more than 130 million people worldwide by 2050, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

Autologous chondrocyte implantation and Scaffolds implants are two of the most common therapies for osteoarthritis. As a result, demand for cartilage repair and regeneration products is predicted to rise as the prevalence of osteoarthritis rises.

High cost of cartilage repair operations is a constraint.

Despite the fact that cartilage repair procedures provide better and longer-lasting results than total knee replacement surgeries, the expense of these treatments is one of the key obstacles preventing patients from adopting them. Knee replacement treatments cost roughly USD 16,000 on average, while cartilage repair procedures cost between USD 18,000 and USD 23,000 on average, depending on the region where the procedure is performed. Because of the high prices, cartilage repair therapies are undervalued in comparison to knee replacement surgeries, resulting in a lower preference for these procedures.

Technological improvements provide an opportunity.

The number of firms working on the development of cartilage regeneration products has expanded dramatically in recent years as a result of expanding government investments in regenerative medicine for cartilage regeneration research. The number of clinical trials and the development of novel technologies for cartilage regeneration has increased as a result of these considerations. Major competitors in this market are investing heavily in R&D, resulting in a robust pipeline of products based on diverse cartilage restoration techniques.

Limitations of cartilage-based stem cell products are a challenge.

For cartilage repair and regeneration, active research is underway to uncover a comprehensive universal source of progenitor cells, such as embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells. However, because to ethical concerns and safety concerns, such as immunological rejection, cancer, and teratoma formation, there are significant hurdles involved with their clinical usage. Authorities such as the Human Tissue Authority (HTA), the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA), the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), and the Central Ethics Committee for Stem Cell Research have created tight laws to supervise these activities. Regenerative medicine research is being regulated to a large amount in numerous nations throughout the world because to the presence of these groups, as well as ethical concerns about the use of embryonic stem cells in research and development operations. Reduced potentiality with age and disease, as well as the development of fibrocartilage rather than hyaline cartilage at the site of damage, are all concerns that affect the successful utilisation of stem cells. Because of the strict rules in place, many products in development never make it to the marketing clearance stage because they fail to meet the safety and efficacy requirements.

In 2019, hospitals accounted for the biggest proportion of the cartilage repair and regeneration market by end user segment.

The cartilage repair and regeneration market is divided into hospitals, ambulatory surgery centres (ASCs), and clinics based on end users. In 2019, the hospitals category held the greatest proportion of the cartilage repair and regeneration market. This can be linked to the expanding number of hospitals in emerging nations and the large number of minimally invasive surgeries performed in hospitals.