at the inflection point of the outbreak of domestic energy-source medical aesthetic devices, let us feel, witness and experience the tide of the industry together.
1. Industry status: medical aesthetic energy source products are favored and diversified to meet consumer needs
2、Underlying variables: five major technology leading, nuggets medical beauty gold track
3、Market observation: for the four major needs, comparative analysis of photoelectric energy sources
4、 Policy logic: under the background of strong supervision, medical cosmetology compliance products usher in the best era
5、Trend evolution: the future imagination space is unlimited, and the four major trends of the energy source industry are judged
looking at the current beauty seekers, they mainly have four categories of needs: whitening, skin rejuvenation, anti-aging, and shaping, and energy source medical beauty devices can meet them.
China's medical aesthetic devices started late, and the current competition pattern of optoelectronic medical aesthetic market is dominated by foreign capital. In the global medical aesthetic optoelectronic device industry, the United States and Israel occupy an absolute advantage in terms of influence and technology. At present, the mainstream laser equipment manufacturers in China include Cynosure of the United States, Candela of the United States, Alma of Israel, Lumenis of the United States, and Eurostar.
In China, overseas companies entered the market earlier, with high technical advantages and industry experience, and the main share is still occupied by foreign brands. According to the data, foreign brands occupy more than 60% of the mid-to-high-end market, including public hospitals and large medical aesthetic chains.
Not only that, the concentration of China's local medical aesthetic optoelectronic device industry is low, and there are a large number of small optoelectronic device manufacturers in the industry, with low technical content, low price, and uneven product quality. China's local medical aesthetic optoelectronic enterprises only occupy about 15% of the market share, with small and medium-sized private outpatient clinics, private clinics and life beauty salons as the main target customers.In addition, due to the high entry threshold set by NMPA certification, most of the uncertified medical aesthetic optoelectronic device products are in the gray field of beauty salons.
the underlying variables: five major technology leading, the gold track of nugget medical aesthetics
laser, intense pulsed light, radio frequency, focused ultrasound, and cryolipolysis are leading the optoelectronic medical aesthetic market.
look at the laser first. As an electromagnetic radiation wave, laser has four characteristics: monochromatic, coherent, parallel, and high energy. The interaction of laser light with biological tissues is a complex process determined by many factors. When a laser hits a biological tissue, it undergoes four physical processes: reflection, scattering, absorption, and transmission. Biological tissues are inhomogeneous substances composed of cells and interstitium of various components, and due to the different structures and electromagnetic properties of different biological tissues, the reflection, scattering, absorption and conduction characteristics of light are also quite different, so the performance of the interaction results between laser and biological tissues is also different.
different wavelengths of lasers can only interact with biomolecules of specific natural frequencies with biological effects, This is because biomolecules are frequency-selective for the absorption of laser photon energy.
In application, the principle of selective photothermal action is often used to solve pigmentary diseases; The extended principle of selective photothermal action can be used in the treatment of hair removal and the treatment of cutaneous vascular diseases; The principle of focal photothermal action can reshape and tighten the skin and improve facial rejuvenation; The principle of photoacoustic action can effectively treat pigmented skin diseases and improve skin rejuvenation.
take the picosecond laser, which mainly applies the principle of photoacoustics, as an example, which is the ultimate solution for pigmentary diseases and can achieve a good freckle removal effect. Picosecond laser can be used to treat a variety of epidermal and dermal pigmentation diseases, and has ideal efficacy for freckles, solar sunspots, Ota nevus and other diseases; It is effective for diseases such as coffee spots and lentigines, but there is still a certain recurrence rate. For epidermal pigmentation diseases such as freckles, sunspots, coffee spots, etc., 532nm Nd:YAG picosecond laser or 755nm alexandrite picosecond laser can be used.
treatment parameters should be set based on the patient's skin type and lesion color, with mild hoarfrost reaction as the treatment endpoint. Dermal hyperpigmentation diseases such as Ota nevus and acquired Ota nevus can be treated with 755nm alexandrite picosecond laser and 1064nm Nd:YAG picosecond laser. The treatment interval is generally 3~6 months, and the treatment effect is ideal, and the cure can be achieved after several treatments. Therefore, as a laser with an output pulse width in the picosecond range, the picosecond laser will play an active role in the treatment of tattoos and most pigment-increasing diseases.
At present, the domestic high-end optoelectronic products market is still in a state of import monopoly, and domestic enterprises are about to break through technical barriers, break the import monopoly, further seize market share, and realize the reshaping of the industrial pattern. At present, in the field of medical aesthetic laser equipment, such as CO2 laser equipment, the technical level of Chinese enterprises has basically reached international standards, and a number of high-quality domestic equipment have also been launched. However, as a new technology developed in the field of medical aesthetic lasers, the market is completely monopolized by well-known overseas manufacturers such as Sinol and Sinoshow because of the high technical barriers of the products.
gratifyingly, there are already many domestic manufacturers in China who have laid out picosecond laser equipment. For example, Foremed Legend, as a representative enterprise of independent R&D and manufacturing of domestic mid-to-high-end medical aesthetic optoelectronic equipment, has officially opened the registration and testing of its core product ForePico multi-wavelength picosecond laser therapy device in November 2022.
In addition, in February 2023, the "Nd:YAG picosecond laser treatment machine" declared by Keying Laser was officially approved by the NMPA, becoming the first domestic picosecond laser treatment product approved for marketing in China.
Therefore, it is foreseeable that as domestic enterprises continue to break through technical barriers, the NMPA will be approved and certified in the future. In the future, the competitiveness of domestic equipment in the high-end market in the field of medical aesthetic lasers will also continue to increase, breaking the monopoly of imports and realizing domestic substitution.
Intense pulsed light, also known as photorejuvenation, is a very intense light source that is focused and filtered to form a broad spectrum of light. As a broad spectrum, intense pulsed light (IPL) can cover multiple absorption peaks such as melanin, oxidized hemoglobin, water, etc., and can effectively treat diseased tissues without damaging normal tissues due to the different natures, depths, and volumes of chromophores contained in normal and diseased tissues, as well as different absorption of light and temperature rise.
IPL has a wavelength range of 550-1200nm, and different wavelengths have different principles for different indications. For example, 415-950nm can treat acne, targeted absorption and kill the metabolite porphyrin of Propionibacterium acnes, and at the same time, photothermal action can denature and reorganize collagen, enhance skin elasticity, improve sebaceous gland secretion and enlarged pores, and reduce acne; Another example is that 560-950nm can treat pigmentation, use selective photothermal absorption to break melanocytes, superficial scabs fall off, and deep layers are metabolized with lymph.
market growth, IPL will increase rapidly, and there is still a lot of room for growth in the future. As one of the more popular medical aesthetic projects in China, the market size of pulsed light medical aesthetic devices has also shown a steady growth trend. In 2020, due to the impact of the epidemic, the scale of China's pulse medical aesthetic device market decreased slightly, with 110 million yuan of parallel copycat products and 690 million yuan of compliant products, totaling 800 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 1.2%. It is estimated that the compliance market size of pulsed light medical aesthetic devices in China will reach 930 million yuan in 2022, and the scale of the IPL industry development in the next few years should not be underestimated.
leading situation dominated by imports, domestic brands have high barriers to entry. In 2020, the market share of imported IPL medical aesthetic devices accounted for as high as 80%, of which 51% were scientific doctors, 20% were acquired by Feidun (acquired by Sisram Medical), 5% were in Israel's Cinolone, and 4% were in the United States.
in this situation, upstream device companies have stronger bargaining power than downstream highly dispersed institutions, and have stronger control and adjustment ability over market prices, stocks, and technologies. In addition, the leading enterprises grasp the main profit division of the market, the gross profit margin is about 50%-60%, and the difficulty and cost of subsequent enterprise capacity expansion and large-scale production are smaller, forming a situation where the strong are always strong. In this case, it is difficult for domestic small and medium-sized enterprises without technical advantages and product characteristics to enter the IPL market.
Based on the development of the industry, the Danke Research Institute believes that for the entrants, low-cost volume and precise treatment are the key. Expanding the use case is an opportunity.
then look at the radio frequency, which is a high-frequency alternating current electromagnetic wave between amplitude modulation and frequency modulation radio waves, Energy exists and travels in space in the form of electricity or magnetism (waves).
Currently, the NMPA has strictly defined and classified RF cosmetic products. According to the Guidelines for the Classification and Definition of RF Cosmetic Products (Draft for Comments) issued by the NMPA in April 2021, RF cosmetic products are mainly divided into three categories according to their medical cosmetology use and risks, as shown in the following table:
RF medical aesthetic devices can be divided into three categories according to the number of electrodes: unipolar, bipolar, and multipolar. The number of electrodes restricts the depth of action of products with different frequencies, and the use effect of products varies greatly.
Compared with other photoelectric energy source medical aesthetic equipment, the technical barriers of RF are relatively low, and the main software and hardware technologies are relatively mature. The following figure shows the main structural components of RF devices. The RF system emits a fixed frequency of RF signals, and after the signal amplification is processed, the signal detection and impedance matching are completed under the control of the CPU, and finally the stable output in the desired energy range is realized. The technical difficulties of RF equipment are concentrated in the CPU control module, VSWR detection and impedance matching modules.
RF medical aesthetic equipment has been developed for more than 20 years, and the domestic medical aesthetic market has always been led by overseas brands. In 1995, Solta Medical launched Thermage monopolar radiofrequency for skin tightening treatment, and in 2002 it was approved by the US FDA, and the application of radiofrequency technology in the field of dermatology and beauty began to prevail. Since 2014, well-known overseas brands of RF medical aesthetic equipment such as Alma, Solta and EndyMed have successively landed in the Chinese market, promoting the rapid development of China's RF medical aesthetic industry.
At present, the industry has entered a period of vigorous development, and a number of (23) RF medical aesthetic equipment have been approved in China, and domestic brands mainly focus on the low-end market. In the past three years, China's radio frequency medical aesthetic equipment has entered a listing boom. Up to now, 23 RF medical aesthetic products have been approved by the NMPA, including 7 RF medical aesthetic devices independently developed in China, accounting for 29% of the marketed products. However, from the perspective of product supervision categories, almost all domestic RF medical aesthetic devices apply for medical device class II certificates, while most of the remaining imported radio frequency medical aesthetic equipment products apply for medical device class III certificates, which shows that most of the domestic radio frequency medical aesthetic equipment has low energy and low risk, focusing on the low-end market.
as Thermage drives the popularity of the RF medical aesthetic industry, domestic companies are actively participating in it and trying to promote the rapid launch of products and seize market opportunities. From 2019 to 2021, 6 radiofrequency medical aesthetic products have been approved in China. Domestic enterprises represented by Refumei and Peninsula Medical are currently actively building media matrices such as Xiaohongshu, Weibo, and Douyin, and hiring Internet celebrities and celebrities to carry out publicity and promotion, so as to quickly enhance brand influence.
then look at focused ultrasound, which is focused on a point through ultrasound waves in the middle of the emission transmission process, and through the conversion of sound waves and heat energy, a high-temperature treatment point is formed in a short time.
similar to other anti-aging technologies, the basic principle of MFU anti-aging is to stimulate collagen production by heating to achieve lifting and firming effects. At present, the potential market for focused ultrasound in China is large, and it is expected to accommodate 3-4 enterprises. In Europe and the United States, focused ultrasound and radio frequency projects are called the two core technologies of facial anti-aging, and the two focus on different groups, Thermage mainly faces the 30-40 age group, and Ultherapy mainly serves consumers over 40 years old, accounting for about 50% of the market size.
The
global focused ultrasound cosmetic systems (approved) market size is estimated at $192.3 million, according to
Market Growth Reports. In China, the market is currently blank due to the fact that three types of approved focused ultrasound products have not yet been approved for marketing.
according to the understanding of the Eggshell Research Institute, there are currently a number of focused ultrasound products in the clinical registration stage, if the regulatory authorities open the focused ultrasound product listing channel, it is expected that the relevant focused ultrasound products are expected to be approved in 2023, if successfully listed, the next 3 years will usher in a wave of small outbreaks, the compound growth rate is expected to reach 20%, and then gradually enter the stage of steady growth, is expected to grow at an annual growth rate of 18%, the market size can reach 3.68 billion yuan in 2031, and can accommodate 3-4 FFU companies in the future.
but at present, there are few focused ultrasound products and it is difficult to get approved, and there are only three products on the market in the world: Ultherapy, Doublo and Sofwave. Ultherapy is the first focused ultrasound product approved by the FDA for facial medical aesthetics, and the first MFU product to be marketed, which was first approved for lifting and tightening the eyebrows, and later approved for application to the jaw, which is an industry benchmark product. The overall design of the Doublo launched by South Korea's Hionic Company is similar to that of the American version of Ultherapy, but the single energy is slightly inferior to that of the American version of ultrasound, so it requires multiple courses of continuous treatment, and was certified by CE and KFDA in 2017. Sofwave is the latest FDA-approved skin tightening treatment that works more effectively on the surface and dermis, and was approved by the FDA in 2019 to reduce fine lines and wrinkles. There are no listed FFU products in China, and the potential market of 3.5 billion yuan is in a state of vacancy to be filled.
imported products have not been approved for marketing for a long time, which is the best opportunity for domestic equipment to turn around against the wind. Judging from the current development situation, the domestic supervision of focused ultrasound equipment is very strict, and the American version of Ultherapy has not been approved by the NMPA for more than ten years, indicating that its safety still needs to be verified, and there is also a risk of not being approved in the future. If domestic manufacturers can grasp the opportunity, break through the limitations of existing technology, and strive to solve safety problems, there is a great chance that they will take the lead in obtaining the third-class device certificate, seize the domestic market, and achieve corner overtaking.
for the MFU track, domestic manufacturers still have a great advantage. On the one hand, there are a number of excellent HIFU companies in China, which have a certain amount of technical accumulation in the field of ultrasound, and the technical requirements of MFU are slightly lower than those of the HIFU industry, so this branch has a strong advantage in cutting into the MFU track, which is expected to further improve the performance of domestic equipment.
on the other hand, for focused ultrasound equipment, equipment maintenance is particularly important, any performance parameter decline may lead to deviation of treatment effect, the after-sales maintenance of imported manufacturers can not keep up, will make the machine perennial in a state of disorder, it is easy to have functional problems and the institution is not aware of the situation, which has a great impact on the treatment. Domestic manufacturers can provide relatively complete integrated services, regularly inspect and replace equipment parts, ensure that the machine is always in the best condition, and improve the safety of use.
Finally, look at cryolipolysis, which is mainly through the non-invasive cryo-energy extraction device to accurately control the freezing energy to the designated lipolysis site, and eliminate the fat cells in the designated site in a targeted manner. Specifically, the lipid ice crystals caused by cold can destroy fat cells, and the damaged fat cells 72 hours after treatment induce an inflammatory reaction, resulting in a lobular panniculitis-like reaction, which reaches a peak on the 14th day and lasts until the 30th day, macrophages engulf damaged fat cells, and the inflammation gradually subsides on the 60th ~ 90th day, the volume of fat cells decreases, and the fat septum lobules thicken, so cryolipolysis is often used as a treatment cycle of 90 days.
2010, the first cryolipolysis device, Cool Sculpting®, was approved by the FDA for the treatment of localized fat accumulation in the lower back of the human body, and has since been approved for more areas such as the abdomen (2012), thighs (2014), submental (2015), arms, back, submammary area and subbuttocks (2016).
In terms of market structure, imports dominate, and domestic established pharmaceutical companies are actively deploying. The global manufacturers of cryolipolysis equipment mainly include Allergan, South Korea's Ensheng, and High Tech, and only Allergan's Cool Sculpting® was approved for marketing in 2016. In April 2021, Sinclair Pharma Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Huadong Pharmaceutical in China, completed the acquisition of High Technology Products, S.L.U., a Spanish energy-based medical aesthetic device company owned by Cocoon Business Investments, S.L.U. High Tech's existing low-temperature fat reduction products Cooltech, Cooltech Define, and Crystile, which are expected to complete the clinical/registration work in the domestic market within 2-3 years.
Market Observation: Comparative analysis of photoelectric energy sources for four major needs
the advantages of optical whitening are evident in skin tone improvement. With the rapid development of the whitening market, the drawbacks of the traditional whitening market have been emerging and facing a reshuffle, and optical whitening will become a new growth point.
combined, optical whitening has two major advantages. On the one hand, it essentially solves the problem and is more competitive than traditional drug whitening methods in terms of efficacy. On the other hand, it is safer, produces fewer side effects, and is more acceptable to consumers who are new to medical aesthetics.
laser and intense pulsed light are both optical energy sources, they have different technical principles and have their own market advantages. Essentially, lasers are high-intensity, high-focusing, energy light sources. Because the emission angle of the laser is extremely small, it is almost a highly equal and collimated beam, which can achieve directional and concentrated emission, so it can produce a strong thermal effect. Intense pulsed light is essentially a broad-spectrum ordinary light, with a wide wavelength range of unfiltered strong light, which needs to be artificially controlled with the help of filters, and is a relatively low-energy and divergent energy source.
according to the characteristics of the two energy sources, the main development of the future advantage market is also different: the laser is highly targeted, the treatment attributes are outstanding, and the future will face a more professional market; Intense pulsed light (IPL) is important for the treatment of a variety of skin problems and vascular skin diseases.
terms of skin texture improvement, the combination of laser and radiofrequency therapy may be the future trend. Non-medical aesthetic methods have limited improvement in skin quality problems, and consumers' demand for medical aesthetic treatments is more rigid. Laser, IPL, and radiofrequency can all improve the skin texture to varying degrees, and laser and radiofrequency are more suitable for the most important treatment options. This is because, although both laser and RF systems can effectively treat skin problems, there is still a difference in the clinical effect between the two due to the large individual differences in skin problems, and there is no perfect competition between laser and RF.
terms of facial rejuvenation, different energy sources target different customer groups. With the rapid development of the anti-aging industry in China in recent years, the concept of anti-aging has deeply penetrated into the consumer group. At this stage, more and more consumers are realizing that anti-aging is not only to solve the problems of aging, but more importantly, to prevent aging. According to iiMedia's statistics on the basic consumer portrait of the anti-aging industry, the concept of anti-aging has penetrated into the young group, and 19-35 years old is the main consumer group in the anti-aging industry. Anti-aging and young age have become a trend, and the consumer group will maintain an expansion trend, and it is expected that the market size of the anti-aging industry will continue to expand.
anti-aging requires comprehensive treatment for skin problems. The first signs of skin aging begin in the epidermis, for example, with dull complexion, fine lines, or rough skin. And, over time, the skin's barrier function also weakens, making it more sensitive to external stressors such as heat or pollution, and the skin may become dry, and reduced blood circulation can lead to dull, rough skin. The pigment in the cells also gradually accumulates pigment as the cells age, leading to the appearance of dark spots.
optical medical aesthetics is the most cost-effective in combating early aging. Among the many energy sources, optical energy sources are the most cost-effective for the treatment of early aging. On the one hand, the optical energy source can take into account the improvement of various skin problems such as skin tone and skin texture, and compared with radiofrequency, ultrasound and other technologies, laser and IPL have a more prominent effect on the treatment of superficial skin problems. On the other hand, optical energy source therapy is less expensive and safer, and it is not easy to cause more serious side effects such as nerve damage and permanent scarring on the face.
For aging skin, radiofrequency and ultrasound have obvious advantages in the deep anti-aging track due to their good skin penetration and high therapeutic energy.
Thermage has a prominent brand effect and a very high reputation barrier. As we all know, radio frequency equipment is the most popular anti-aging project in the market, especially Thermage, which can be called the star project in the optoelectronic medical beauty track.
focused ultrasound is widely favored by the industry, and may be on par with Thermage in the future.From the development process of the anti-aging field, it can be seen that the anti-aging market has a prominent feature, the technology iteration is very fast, and the market needs the continuous stimulation of new technologies. At present, the latest radiofrequency anti-aging technology has successfully widened the depth to 4.3mm, which is close to the deepest layer of the dermis, but in order to achieve a more significant anti-aging effect and improve the severely aging skin, the fascia layer is the key to treatment. Focused ultrasound is the only technology that can reach the fascial layer, which is very attractive for middle-aged and elderly consumers. At the same time, the energy of focused ultrasound is higher, and from the perspective of marketing, it is a very competitive marketing point.
According to the research results of the Eggshell Research Institute, it is generally believed in the industry that once the product is approved, the next anti-aging outlet is very likely to be focused ultrasound equipment.
In terms of fat loss and shaping, the popularity of the track continues to rise, and the potential market needs to be developed urgently. China's fat reduction technology has experienced the invasive era represented by liposuction, and now it has gradually progressed to a new era of non-invasive lipolysis represented by cryotherapy, ultrasound, radio frequency, laser, etc.
At present, non-invasive lipolysis is in the blue ocean field, and major companies are vying to be the first to develop and enter the market, but the non-surgical body contouring technology on the market is only cryogenic, ultrasound, Only a few products in RF and laser have passed the NMPA certification, and the potential market needs to be fully developed.
, the effect of cryolytic fat reduction is good, and the market recognition is high; Laser lipolysis treatment is short-timed, gentle and comfortable; Radiofrequency lipolysis is a kind of high-heat ablation, which has the dual effect of fat reduction and skin tightening; Ultrasonic lipolysis is a high-energy focus, which has the characteristics of integrated fat reduction and anti-aging; Magnetic wave body shaping can achieve a two-pronged approach of "fat burning + muscle gain"; Fat dissolving injection is a small area of fat reduction that directly destroys fat cells.
As the fat reduction and body shaping industry is becoming more and more professional and standardized, fat reduction and shaping institutions will also provide more professional, personalized and all-round fat reduction and shaping service solutions according to different types of consumer needs.
future, the development of non-invasive sculpting technology is redefining the sculpting market and will unleash its huge potential in continuous progress as it continues to provide consumers with a variety of choices and help organizations develop highlight projects, acquire customers and accelerate expansion. In addition, the combination of all-round fat reduction and shaping solutions may become a trend, with the ultimate goal of consumers' full-cycle fat reduction and shaping needs, and the combination of different energy types or various types of energy and injectable fat reduction programs can not only continuously improve the efficiency and effect of treatment, but also continue to meet consumer needs.
policy logic: under the background of strong supervision, medical aesthetic compliance products usher in the best era
interests, the current chaos in the medical cosmetology industry exists in many links of the industry, and there are many non-compliance problems in medical cosmetology institutions, product circulation, marketing and promotion, etc., so it is imperative to operate in compliance in the future medical cosmetology industry.
the tightening of the industry supervision margin, promote the healthy and orderly development of the industry in the medium and long term, accelerate the clearing of the industry, and benefit the head upstream enterprises and formal medical aesthetic institutions. In recent years, policy supervision has been tightened and gradually shifted to normalized daily supervision. For example, in 2022, the State Food and Drug Administration issued the "Classification Catalogue of Medical Devices" and the "Catalogue of Medical Devices Prohibited from Commissioned Production", which clearly included water light injections, radio frequency instruments, and thread embedding into the supervision of Class III devices and prohibited commissioned production, strengthened the implementation of the main responsibility for product quality and safety, improved the quality of medical device production, and effectively cracked down on parallel imports, fakes and other industry chaos.
Although in the short term, the number of non-compliant medical aesthetic institutions will shrink rapidly, which may affect the decline in purchasing demand in the entire market; However, from a long-term perspective, the rectification and purging of the market will create a better marketing environment for domestic products with certificates and compliant circulation, and will be beneficial to medical aesthetic institutions with high compliance, strong self-operation and anti-risk capabilities, and ultimately bring better and more compliant services to consumers. Therefore, it is foreseeable that domestic products with certificates and compliant circulation will gain more market share.
energy source equipment has broad potential for improvement, and domestic faucets are waiting to be seen. China's optoelectronic equipment manufacturers are still in the development stage, the high-end market is still occupied by overseas leading enterprises, there is still a gap in the technical strength of domestic local brands, and the optoelectronic equipment market has long been full of parallel goods and fakes.
However, since 2018, the medical aesthetic market has entered an era of strong regulation, and the market for parallel and counterfeit goods has been severely impacted. Under the regulatory trend, in the future, in the subdivision of medical aesthetic optoelectronic equipment, the parallel and fake goods market will be further compressed, and the market size of genuine products will be more effectively guaranteed. On the other hand, at present, most of the domestic equipment is concentrated in the low-end product pipeline, the sales price of the equipment is generally concentrated in 5-100,000 yuan, and the high-end market is almost completely monopolized by imported manufacturers.
Therefore, domestic high-end manufacturers are urgently needed in the market.
trend evolution: the future imagination space is unlimited, and the four major trends of the energy source industry are judged and judged
First, the penetration rate will increase, the price will fall, and the optoelectronic projects will gradually become popular. The people's acceptance of medical aesthetics has increased significantly, and their preference has shifted to the pursuit of nature, which is conducive to the increase in the penetration rate of optoelectronic medical aesthetic projects. According to statistics, from 2017 to 2021, the number of medical aesthetic users in China increased from 4 million to 19.13 million, and the scale of medical aesthetic users in China is expected to exceed 20 million in 2022. It is worth noting that the aesthetics of medical aesthetic users in China have gradually matured, changing from the assembly line plastic surgery face in the early years to the natural beauty in line with personal style, and paying more attention to side effects, sequelae and other issues. Compared with surgical and injectable procedures, non-invasive photoelectric medical aesthetic programs have almost no risk of failure and disfigurement, and the treatment effect is more natural, which can significantly improve consumer self-confidence. It is not difficult to predict that the penetration rate of optoelectronic medical aesthetic projects will continue to increase in the future.
intensified market competition has created the possibility of reducing terminal prices, and the development of industry norms has prompted optoelectronic projects to evolve into popular daily maintenance projects. On the one hand, in the next few years, with the rapid emergence of domestic equipment in the field of optoelectronics, and the continuous entry of excellent and innovative foreign products into China, the fierce market competition will eventually lead to medical aesthetic equipment manufacturers to adjust their pricing strategies, and even shift from the heavy consumables model to the light consumables model, making room for downstream medical aesthetic institutions to lower project prices. At present, there have been many optoelectronic projects in the market that have seen significant price reductions.
On the other hand, under the background of increasingly strict supervision in the field of medical aesthetics in China and the increasingly mature minds of medical aesthetic consumers, the operation of the beauty industry will gradually shift from a marketing-inducing model to a consumer demand-led model. The design of the service package is more in line with the actual efficacy of the product, and under the premise of the right price, the optoelectronic project will gradually evolve into a popular daily maintenance project.
window of opportunity for medical cosmetology energy source equipment to be replaced by domestic ones. The National Health Commission issued a document on the reduction of the budget of public hospitals, which will affect pharmaceutical and medical device companies, which is good for domestic equipment with more competitive prices. Under the huge market substitution opportunities, more and more enterprises, capital, and R&D and management talents are entering the track of optoelectronic medical aesthetic devices.
Driven by the strong supervision and formalization of the medical aesthetic industry, the integration of diagnosis and treatment is imperative. In the medical aesthetic industry, the vast majority of consumers have skin problems that do not reach the level of serious lesions, and skin problems are in a relatively early stage. At the same time, this part of consumers has a strong desire for beauty and pays more attention to the efficacy. If there is no accurate diagnosis as the basis, it is easy to lead to poor treatment effect, poor consumer experience, and for some projects, it will also increase the operational risk. Therefore, the value of skin diagnosis to the medical aesthetic industry is particularly important, and it is a prerequisite for effective treatment.
strong empowerment of the photoelectric energy source track by the combination of medicine and equipment. A single business model limits the market volume of optoelectronic devices, and business model innovation is the key to breaking the situation. At this stage, the biggest problem of optoelectronic devices is that the commercialization scenario is too simple, which can only be carried out in the only way of hospital treatment, and the lack of continuous management of end customers restricts the market volume to a large extent.
whole-process model refers to providing an integrated solution from diagnosis, treatment to postoperative repair, and at the same time providing whole-process guidance and management to patients with the help of the Internet and digital platforms, effectively expanding the application scenarios of optoelectronic medical aesthetics. In the new closed loop, the digital management platform is the necessary foundation, and drug combination therapy is the key to postoperative repair and terminal management.
On the whole, the drug-device joint model is the only way for optoelectronic devices to break through the existing market value in the future, but it is still in the early stage. For equipment manufacturers, laying out the drug track in advance and exploring the combination of drugs and devices can effectively build track barriers and bring greater imagination to themselves.
there is a shortage of talents in the medical aesthetic industry, and robotics technology may become an important solution. According to iResearch's data, based on the estimation of 13,000 legal medical aesthetic institutions, the number of regular doctors in non-multi-site practice is about 100,000, while in the case of multi-site practice, the actual number of medical aesthetic doctors in China in 2019 is only 38,000. In the face of the continuous rise in the popularity of the industry, due to the scarcity of head doctors, the high profits of the black market are tempting, resulting in the frequent emergence of black doctors in the industry. According to the China Association for Integration, the number of illegal practitioners in medical cosmetology exceeds 100,000, and illegal doctors account for about 72% of the total number of medical cosmetology doctors.
In recent years, the technical research and product development of robots in the medical field have been continuously promoted, and surgical robots are the largest and most important field in the field of medical robots.
surgical robot is to achieve higher automation, intelligence and precision, which is in line with the current development trend of medical aesthetic energy source segmentation. Although the current energy source equipment has the advantages of convenient operation, less pain, fast recovery and low infection rate, there are also shortcomings such as uncoordinated hand-eye surgery, long learning, easy fatigue, hand shaking, and laser radiation affecting the quality of surgery.
the generation and application of surgical robots with medical aesthetic energy sources in the future, it can greatly reduce the overall operation time, improve the surgical efficiency, realize the standardization of surgery, and enhance the surgical effect. For the physician side, it originally required years of professional clinical training to achieve the proficiency, but through the use of surgical robots, the doctor only needs to operate the control handle to complete the operation in an intuitive way, which greatly reduces the difficulty of the doctor's operation and greatly shortens the learning curve. Secondly, robotic surgery is also very helpful in reducing occupational diseases among doctors.
In summary, it can be seen that the era of light medical aesthetics has arrived. Under the general trend of technological iteration and stricter policies, those optoelectronic medical aesthetic enterprises that dare to innovate and make continuous breakthroughs will eventually stand at the forefront of industry development.
