Thanks to extensive reform to healthcare services and improved local supplier offerings, demand for color ultrasound is surging in China, according to a new report from market research firm InMedica.
Color ultrasound equipment revenues increased by 10% from 2010 to 2011, and are forecasted to grow by more than 80% by 2015, InMedica said. Most demand is being recorded in the low-end and midrange cart market segments (products less than $60,000), although some growth is also attributable to increased uptake of compact ultrasound equipment, the company found.
Current demand for color ultrasound systems are being driven mostly large metropolitan (tier 3) and county-based (tier 2) hospitals, InMedica said. Thanks to higher reimbursement rates for color equipment, healthcare providers can realize a better return on investment for these systems than they could with black-and-white units, market analyst Owen Tang said in a statement.
Black-and-white systems are predominantly installed and used in tier 1 health centers and family clinics in China. These institutions benefited, however, from strong investments in 2009 and 2010 as part of the Chinese healthcare reform and many low-end Chinese suppliers are entering the color ultrasound market, InMedica said.
Chinese ultrasound market: Changing outlook by technology
Unit shipments - 2010 to 2016
Image courtesy of InMedica.
Government support of Chinese black-and-white ultrasound suppliers had prevented multinational suppliers from competing on price in the entry-level and low-end market, but rising demand for higher-specification color systems in tier 2 hospitals is causing a convergence of interest for local and multinational suppliers, and increasing the intensity of competition, InMedica senior analyst Stephen Holloway said in a statement.
As a result, InMedica is forecasting a dramatic shift for the China market, with color ultrasound equipment set to dominate. Double-digit revenue growth is projected from 2013, as the bulk of investment in equipment replacement is implemented, according to the company. Even stronger growth could be provided longer-term by the potential of the tier 1 market.
![Examples of ultrasound findings and techniques. (A) Images in a 39-year-old male patient with a mass in the left thigh. The mass is heterogeneous on the B-mode US image (compared with the patient in D) and showed increased microvascularity (superb microvascular imaging [SMI]) and shear-wave elastography (SWE) values. Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy (with pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma in surgical specimen). (B) Images in an 18-year-old male patient with a mass in the left leg. The mass is hypoechoic on the B-mode image, with no other findings suggestive of malignancy. The lesion is in contact with the cortex of the tibia, which is slightly irregular. CT revealed a doubtful anteromedial tibial erosion. The microvascular study demonstrated high vascularization, suggestive of malignancy. Periosteal Ewing sarcoma was diagnosed with both histologic and immunohistochemical confirmation. (C) Images in a 69-year-old female patient with a lump growing on the outside of the left leg. Multiple SWE examinations were performed (please note the high values obtained in the measurements, whereas the color map highlights the stiffness relative to adjacent tissues). SMI showed areas of increased vascularization to target for sampling. Undifferentiated spindle cell sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with residual leiomyosarcoma in the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant therapy. (D) Images in a 56-year-old female patient with a mass in the right thigh. The mass is heterogeneous at both B-mode ultrasound (similar to patient A) and MRI (coronal T2-weighted spectral attenuated inversion recovery [SPAIR]; T1-weighted pre-contrast and postcontrast imaging), which even shows uptake after the administration of paramagnetic contrast material, which is traditionally suggestive of malignancy. Low values at SMI and elastography are suggestive of benignity. Spindle cell lipoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with atypical spindle cell lipomatous tumor in the surgical specimen.](https://img.auntminnie.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/08/images-radiol250278fig2.APCFLSvX6p.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
