Report: mHealth app market to reach $392 million in 2015

The New Year brings with it new forecasts concerning the future of the mobile application (mHealth) market. While both two reports reflect the same growth trend, the strength of the change varies substantially. The difference between the two researches can stem from using different methodologies, but also from the difficulties arising from trying to predict market trends for new technologies that integrate elements from different industries.

Earnings of the mHealth app market are expected to rise to $392 million from $230 million in 2010, according to a report published by research company Frost & Sullivan.

"From 2008 to 2010 mHealth consistently outpaced forecast growth and revenue," said Frost & Sullivan Senior Industry Analyst Zachary Bujnoch. "mHealth apps will continue on a steep growth curve as increasingly sophisticated mobile technologies and relationship-management tools disrupt the market."

Bujnoch added that today, we are seeing the tip of the iceberg in the U.S. mHealth market's potential as mobile apps are the single-biggest digital channel since the '90s and the Web.

Meanwhile, a separate report published by research2guidance estimates that the mHealth apps market was worth some $718 million in 2011.

The report, entitled "Mobile Health Market Report 2011-2016" claims that the smartphone application market for mobile healthcare is still in an embryonic state despite its huge potential. The authors noted, however, that during the course of 2011 the mHealth market grow very fast following the increase in the usage of smartphones and the doubling of the number of mHealth applications.

"A majority of the big healthcare companies have discovered mHealth applications as an innovative way to promote and deliver healthcare services and products," research2guidance analysts noted. "A testament to this is that a number of these large players published mHealth apps in 2011 that go far beyond a simple allergy tracker or pill reminder, e.g. Sanofi Aventis' sensor-based iBGStar Diabetis monitoring app."

Aerotel to launch GeoSKeeper in North America

Aerotel Medical Systems will launch the GeoSKeeper personal safety and location system in North America after it received the regulatory clearance for this market.

GeoSKeeper mHealth Device

In Western Europe and Eastern Europe, the GeoSKeeper has been growing in popularity. The mobile based service enables the accurate location of seniors, children and lone workers. By wearing the light-weight device on their wrist, the users’ accurate location can be sent to family and caregivers in real time.

GeoSkeeper offers a new level of safety beyond existing PERS (Personal Emergency Response System) and traditional social alarm systems. The GeoSkeeper has recently received the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Certification, paving the way for further strengthening o Aerotel’s position in the lucrative U.S. market.

Overall, the year 2011 was a great year for Aerotel Medical Systems expending activities all over the globe. Aerotel has expanded its offerings in North America and in Europe and continues to support service providers offering remote monitoring services of health problems for patients suffering from chronic conditions such as congestive heart failure (CHF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Aerotel technology, which allows home-bound patients to take readings such as their weight, blood pressure and other key metrics, saves money and makes users’ life much easier.

With a client base of more than 50 countries around the globe and more than a decade of rich experience, Aerotel is well positioned to successfully enter new, mature and emerging markets in 2012.

Investing in automated monitoring systems reduces re-hospitalization rates

The usage of home monitoring systems led to a 44 percent decline in 30-day hospital readmission rates, according to a study published by Medical Care Journal.

The research focused on the Geisinger Monitoring Program (GMP) interactive voice response protocol, which is a post-hospital discharge telemonitoring system, used as an adjunct to existing case management in a primary care Medicare population. The main objective of GMP is to reduce emergency department visits and hospital re-admissions.

The authors said, that while automated home monitoring systems have been used to coordinate care to improve patient outcomes and reduce re-hospitalizations, there is only very little formal study of efficacy.

"Investing in automated monitoring systems may reduce hospital re-admission rates among primary care case-managed patients," the authors concluded. "Evidence from this quasi-experimental study demonstrates that the combination of telemonitoring and case management, as compared with case management alone, may significantly reduce re-admissions in a Medicare Advantage population."

The researchers used a group of 875 Medicare patients, who were enrolled in the combined case-management and GMP program, to compare their results with 2,420 matched control patients, who were only case managed. Claims data were used to document an acute care admission followed by a re-admission within 30 days in the pre-intervention and post-intervention periods.