Mental Health Clinical Trials Market Size (2024 - 2029)

Mental Health Clinical Trials Market Analysis

The Mental Health Clinical Trials Market size is estimated at USD 3.29 billion in 2024, and is expected to reach USD 4.87 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 8.11% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

The key factors driving the growth of the mental health clinical trials market are the increasing prevalence of mental health disorders, increased funding from government agencies, pharmaceuticals, and biotech companies, rising number of clinical trials, and growing awareness of mental health conditions. In addition, the pharmaceutical companies' growing research and development efforts are another factor anticipated to drive global market growth over the coming years.

The increasing prevalence of mental health conditions such as anxiety disorders, depression, and bipolar affective disorder is projected to drive the growth of the mental health clinical trials market. For instance, according to an article published by the Middle East Current Psychiatry in May 2023, an estimated 4.05% of the global population suffers from anxiety disorders, which account for around 301 million people.

In addition, according to the same source, the global burden of anxiety has risen significantly over the last few decades, and the burden is rising amid factors such as socioeconomic development, a highly dependent older population, and urbanization. This exponentially higher disease burden is expected to accelerate the development of potential treatment interventions through clinical trials to support patient well-being.

Moreover, the growing association of mental disorders with all age groups has facilitated the demand for new therapeutic approaches to manage such conditions. For instance, according to February 2024 data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, around 1 in 5 Australians aged 16 to 85 experienced a mental disorder, and over 17% of Australians had anxiety disorder. Such evolving disease burdens have put pressure on pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies to develop improved treatment regimens to manage disease symptoms of mental conditions, and this is further likely to contribute to greater clinical trial volumes.

The significant burden of mental disorders across the globe pushed pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to develop and commercialize promising therapies for these disorders.

For instance, according to August 2024 data from the Clinical Trials. Gov, there were around 360 studies for anxiety disorders sponsored by pharmaceutical and biotechnology in North America, followed by 121 studies in Europe. Some key companies that sponsored those studies were AstraZeneca, Novartis AG, Pfizer, and Lilly. Thus, such initiatives by key pharmaceutical companies to develop a promising treatment for mental health conditions are likely to accelerate industry uptake during the forecast period.

In addition, several efforts by market players to strengthen their development pipelines through business acquisitions are projected to spur industry uptake. For instance, in September 2023, Otsuka Pharmaceuticals signed an agreement to acquire Mindset Pharma. This acquisition would help Otsuka strengthen its investigational pipeline for anxiety and depression disorders. Such efforts undertaken by pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies to foster research and innovation in the mental health space are further anticipated to offer significant growth avenues for industry uptake.

Thus, the above-mentioned factors, such as the growing burden of mental health conditions worldwide and a surge in pharmaceutical company research and development, are projected to accelerate market expansion over the coming years. However, the stringent regulations related to mental health clinical trials and limited awareness in developing economies about mental health are projected to limit market expansion over the coming years.

Mental Health Clinical Trials Industry Segmentation

Mental health clinical trials investigate methods to prevent, detect, or treat various diseases and conditions, playing a pivotal role in advancing comprehension and treatment of mental health disorders.

The mental health clinical trials market is segmented by study design, phase, disorder, sponsor, and geography. By study design, the market is segmented into interventional, observational, and expanded access. By phase, the market is segmented into phase I, phase II, phase III, and phase IV. By disorder, the market is segmented into anxiety disorders, depression, dissociation and dissociative disorders, schizophrenia, bipolar affective disorder, and other disorders. By sponsor, the market is segmented into pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies, government agencies, and other sponsors. By geography, the market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East and Africa. The report also covers the estimated market sizes and trends for 17 countries across major regions globally. The report offers market sizes and forecasts in terms of value (USD) for the above segments.