Microfluidics Market Growth & Trends

The global microfluidics market size is expected to reach USD 60.3 billion by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 16.3% from 2021 to 2028. Significant across clinical and analytical research is expected to boost the adoption of microfluidics devices, thereby driving the market. Additionally, the need for effective devices, which can handle low-volume sample devices offers lucrative market opportunities. Thus, market entities have already begun to integrate microfluidics technology into their existing portfolio of diagnostic products.

With further technological advancements, digital microfluidics has become an attractive market space for several diagnostic entities. Automation and portability are two key factors that play a significant role in the selection of microfluidic devices. In addition, users are keen on adopting cutting-edge solutions. This has provided significant traction to the miniature microfluidic-based tools among consumers, in turn, encouraging companies to invest in their development.

Since microfluidics is the underlying principle of lab-on-a-chip devices, it offers various benefits such as minimal sample volume, minimal reagent usage, reduced waste, and rapid processing. Fully automated microfluidics with enhanced functional capabilities and robust modularity is also creating growth opportunities for manufacturers operating in the market.

Microfluidic POC technologies are expected to enhance patient care by ensuring personalization, early disease detection, and easy monitoring. In addition, integration of microfluidics with POC devices is expected to offer significant profitable opportunities to manufacturers operating in developing economies.

Lateral Flow Assay (LFA) and nucleic acid amplification are 2 peculiar technologies, which represent a majority of the microfluidic point of care diagnostics. Over the past few years, several microfluidic technologies have been introduced to offer rapid point-of-care testing to the central laboratories or high-throughput diagnostic solutions, alternatively. An upsurge in the demand for such tests, with millions of these tests required each month across the globe, is estimated to make significant revenue contributions particularly in the respiratory-testing area, attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.

Microfluidics Market Report Highlights

  • The medical segment displayed market dominance throughout the study period, attributed to the need for novel molecular diagnostic solutions with desired sensitivities, rapid turnaround times, and minimal associated costs
  • Microfluidics has proven highly profitable not only across biological bench-workflows but also across different pharmaceutical and medical applications, which include cancer treatment as well as infectious disease diagnosis
  • Researchers are focused on developing integrated microfluidic devices capable of performing high-precision PCR, which has contributed to the dominance of the PCR and RT-PCR segment in 2020 and is set to continue this trend through the study period
  • A highly sensitive version of PCR, digital PCR, has gained immense popularity as it reduces sample cross-contamination and overall analysis costs; further expected to propel segment growth
  • 3D organ-on-a-chip models allow examination of physiology of organs, the effect of pathogens and pharmaceutical drugs on organs, and provide in-depth data to researchers for types of therapies
  • This has made significant contributions to the segment’s growth rate through the forecast period, making it the fastest-growing segment among other market applications
  • Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) dominated the market in 2020 among other materials used in the fabrication of devices
  • The segment’s dominance is attributed to the robustness, nontoxicity, biocompatibility, optical transparency, permeability, elastomeric features, and affordable cost of PDMS
  • In North America, the market generated the highest revenue in 2020 attributed to the availability of funds and research capital, local presence of dominant players, and launch of novel sample volume screening technologies
  • Factors such as high demand for point-of-care diagnostic solutions to cater to the expanding geriatric population base and the presence of academic institutions focused on microfluidic-based research have contributed to the growth of the market in Asia Pacific