Market Trends of South Africa Ophthalmic Devices Industry
Intraocular Lenses Segment Expects to Register a High CAGR in the South Africa Ophthalmic Devices Market During the Forecast Period
Intraocular lenses (IOLs) are long-term, artificial lenses that can restore both near and far vision by swapping out the eye's native lens. IOLs are most frequently used in cataract surgery to replace damaged lenses. For instance, premium intraocular lenses are used for patients with glaucoma during cataract surgery, after removing the cataract, and a new lens is placed into the eye.
Several types of intraocular lenses are monofocal (one focusing distance, providing either near, medium, or distance vision), multifocal (have multiple focusing distances in different areas of the lens, capable of bringing into focus objects that are at a far, medium, or close distance from the patient's eye), extended depth of focus (have the potential to give patients distance, medium, and even some near vision) and toric (has different focusing powers in different areas of the lens to correct astigmatism (irregularly shaped cornea).
The factors attributed to the market growth are the rising eye disorders and the increasing adoption of intraocular lenses. For instance, according to an article published in January 2021, titled 'Prevalence and associated factors of vision loss in the South African National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey', the prevalence of blindness with cataract, refractive error, and glaucoma was 0.90%, a major leading cause of vision loss in South Africa.
In addition, the rising geriatric population is also contributing to market growth as aging causes various structural and physiological changes that predispose adults to ocular morbidity (such as presbyopia, cataract, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration). For instance, according to the 2022 statistics published by the United Nations Population Fund, in South Africa, a large proportion of the living population is aged 15-64 and accounts for 66% in 2022. In addition, as per the same source, 6% of the population is aged 65 years and above in 2022.
Thus, owing to the aforementioned factors, the market is expected to grow significantly during the forecast period.
