The medical membrane market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.1% during the forecast period 2022-2030, majorly owing to the rising demand for artificial organs. The medical membrane also known as artificial membrane has various applications in medical science with keen demand in drug delivery systems, tissue engineering, artificial organs, and others. In the case of artificial organs, the medical membrane has been a base for artificial kidneys, artificial pancreas, artificial liver, and membrane oxygenation. 

Research studies show that organ transplant has reached a new record in 2019 with 7,397 living donor transplants; with subsequent demand by patients suffering from end-stage renal disease (ESRD), where organ transplantation or dialysis is required for filtration and blood purification. As per United Network for Organ Sharing data, health care teams across the country performed 39,718 transplants in total using organs from both deceased and living donors. For ESRD, incidence counts are expected to increase to 154,000–163,000 per year. According to the U.S. Renal Data System 2019 Annual Data Report, the incidence of kidney failure which requires dialysis or transplantation for ESRD ranks highest in the U.S., the prevalence of ESRD reached 746,557 in 2017 which represents a considerable rise of 2.6% since 2016.

State of affairs in the market

 The shift to the current lifestyle has significantly increased the number of organ failures. There is a vast supply and demand gap in the market of transplants, as the number of patients is quite large than organ donors, which is restraining the overall growth of the medical membrane market. According to the US Department of Organ Donation and Transplantation, as of 2017 more than 116,000 patients are on the waiting list, out of which hardly 30% are getting transplants performed. 

Another major driver of the medical membrane market is increasing cases of kidney disorders. The US, Japan, Germany, Brazil, and Italy are the major countries with elevated renal replacement therapy demand.  As per the data obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the year 2016, more than 26 million people in the US have some or the other type of chronic kidney disease. The data also revealed that globally, more than 2 million people are on renal replacement therapy to support their life. The annual growth rate for dialysis patients is more than 7-8%. This rise in cases has significantly contributed to the rising demand for medical membranes. 

The market of medical membranes can be segmented based on the following segments:

By Material

• Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)
• Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)
• Polypropylene (PP)
• Polysulfone (PSU)
• Polyether Sulfone (PESU)

By Process Technology 

• Ultrafiltration
• Membrane filtration
• Nanofiltration
• Reverse Osmosis
• Dialysis
• Gas Filtration
• Others

By Application

• IV Infusion & Sterile Filtration
• Bio-artificial processes
• Drug Delivery
• Hemodialysis
• Pharmaceutical Filtration
• Others

By Geography

• North America
  • U.S.
  • Canada
  • Mexico
• Europe
  • The UK
  • Germany
  • France
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • Poland
  • Russia
  • Rest of Europe
• Asia Pacific 
  • China
  • India
  • Japan
  • Australia & New Zealand
  • Korea
  • ASEAN
  • Rest of Asia Pacific
• Middle East & Africa (MEA)
  • UAE
  • Saudi Arabia
  • South Africa
  • Rest of MEA
• South America
  • Argentina
  • Brazil
  • Rest of South America

However, certain challenges hamper the growth of this market, which include a lengthy validation process. Although there is a high demand for medical products and devices, manufacturers are facing various regulatory constraints due to manifold regulations set by the US Food and Drug Administration. Moreover, the lifespan of membranes used in different medical applications is limited and, therefore, they need to be replaced due to which people rarely prefer this treatment option. 

The global medical membrane market for pharmaceutical filtration is the dominating application due to increasing incidences of diseases, advancement in medicines, and the growing pharmaceutical and healthcare industry. By material type, PSU & PESU dominate the medical membranes market as these possess excellent thermal and mechanical properties and are widely used in medical applications and waste-treatment membranes. Nanofiltration only rejects multivalent ions and also greatly reduces the operating pressures which makes it the preferred process technology in the market.

Developing a potential product for commercialization is an approach to minimize uncertainty and maximize growth. Several key players involved in the commercialization and development of medical membranes are Asahi Kasei, Pall Corporation, 3M, Merck Millipore, Koch Membrane Systems, and GE Healthcare among others.

Products directing the market

• Pall Corporation’s Vivid Plasma Separation membranes are robust materials for the rapid and efficient separation of plasma from whole blood. The membrane provides the advantage of minimal time requirement and can separate more than 80% of the plasma from the whole blood sample with a minimum breakdown of red blood cells.
• Asahi Kasei developed Hemodialysis based on the core technology of hollow-fiber membrane separation. Polysulfone-membrane dialyzers (artificial kidneys) have superior biocompatibility and permeability and are being used in more than 70 countries.
• MF Millipore Membranes by Merck Millipore are mixed cellulose esters (MCE), hydrophilic membrane most widely used membranes in analytical and research applications. The product is available on market in a range of pore sizes.