The global market for Blood Gas and Electrolyte Analyzers is expected to spike by 10.1% in the year 2020 and continue to grow to reach US$1 billion by the year 2027, trailing a post COVID-19 CAGR of 5.1% over the analysis period 2020 through 2027. The increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations is more than counterbalancing the decline in non-COVID-19 ICU admissions due to surgery cancellations and postponement. Hospitalization rates remain high in the age group of 60 to 79 years. The overwhelming caseload of COVID-19 patients globally has burdened the healthcare system and created a pressing demand for diagnostic solutions and medical interventions. For COVID-19 patients that display signs of respiratory distress, or who are admitted in ICU units and are on ventilation support, blood gas testing is considered crucial. The assessment of damage caused due to COVID-19 in patients requires several diagnostic tests and medical interventions. While reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests remain gold standard to diagnose the infection, critical care tests including blood gas and electrolyte analyzers are gaining attention among the medical fraternity for effective treatment decisions. Arterial blood gas analyzers offer measurement related to acid-base status and blood oxygenation along with gas exchange efficiency of the lungs. The device gains relevance in helping medical professionals effectively manage COVID-19 patients while making relevant treatment decisions.

Arterial blood gas is a common test used for measuring blood acid and oxygenation levels along with diagnosing respiratory or renal conditions. Respiratory systems of patients are critically damaged by COVID-19 infection are hence they are unable to move oxygen inside the body and remove carbon dioxide. Also acid-base imbalance is common in patients suffering from severe viral infections, such as COVID-19. Hence accurate measurement of blood gas results is important to manage the progression of the disease in patients to assess their critical condition. The requirement to monitor these patients is driving volume demand for blood gas and electrolyte analyzers in hospitals. Blood gas and electrolyte analyzers measure various parameters from blood samples, such as pH, pCO2 and pO2, electrolytes, and metabolites. The pH value of blood and serum indicates the balance between the blood, renal, and lung systems, while the pCO2 value is used to assess the amount of carbon dioxide eliminated from the body, and the pO2 value of arterial blood indicates oxygen absorbance in the lungs. Depending on patient care scenario, physicians are relying on sophisticated critical care testing devices such as cartridge combinations of electrolytes and gases. The increasing use of these systems for point-of-care testing in laboratories and acute care venues such as COVID-19 emergency rooms, intensive care units and ambulances is boosting demand for blood gas and electrolyte analyzers.

To leverage the opportunities for growth, several companies are launching advanced devices. Radiometer, a major provider of blood gas testing solutions, is offering ABL800 Flex blood gas analyzers for automated sampling and high throughput. Instrumentation Laboratory is serving healthcare needs with its advanced Gem Premier 5000 blood gas testing platform that offers automated quality with each sample. The device quickly identifies and automatically rectifies errors. While Roche Diagnostics and Nova Biomedical are offering cobas b 123 point-of-care and StatProfile pHOx Ultra systems, respectively, for enhanced throughput. On the other hand, Abbott is riding high on the popularity of its handheld i-Stat 1 blood analyzer solution for critical care that allows menu expansion for including various chemistries, electrolyte, blood gases, hematology, coagulation and cardiac markers. Epoc, a handheld wireless device from Siemens Healthineers, supports exhaustive blood analysis testing at bedside. These sophisticated solutions from vendors are anticipated to improve patient care by enabling physicians to make informed and better treatment decisions. Siemens Healthineers has secured US FDA approval for its advanced RapidPoint 500e blood gas analyzer for critical care testing. The device is intended measure electrolyte, blood gas, Co-oximetry, metabolite and neonatal bilirubin levels to aid diagnosis and monitoring of critically-ill patients in emergency rooms, intensive care units and operating rooms. Monitoring of respiratory conditions in point-of-care settings involves the use of blood gas testing devices capable of offering accurate and fast results while improving workflow efficiency. The analyzer is built on Integri-sense technology that allows automated functional checks for accurate results at point-of-care settings. In addition, RAPIDPoint 500e blood gas analyzer seamlessly integrates into hospital networks using the company's Point of Care Ecosystem for remote, convenient management of devices and operators at multiple sites. The new device holds a critical role in response efforts towards COVID-19 that depend heavily on blood gas testing for patient monitoring and management.