Dive Brief:
- Google searches for elective surgeries were up 115% in the U.S. over pre-pandemic levels, Needham analysts wrote, possibly indicating rising consumer interest.
- The analysts tracked searches during the week of June 4 to June 10 for 20 elective procedures, including knee and hip replacements, hernia repairs, heart valve surgeries, colonoscopies and hysterectomies.
- “We believe that Google Trends data may provide insight into the level of consumer interest in elective procedures,” the analysts wrote. In the first quarter, several medical device companies benefited from rising procedure volumes, including Intuitive Surgical, Stryker and Zimmer Biomet.
Dive Insight:
Searches for surgeries in all specialties in the United States increased last week compared to pre-COVID levels. That includes a 120% increase for orthopedic searches, a 113% increase for general surgery, a 109% increase for cardiovascular procedures, and a 124% increase for aesthetic procedures, according to the report.
Worldwide searches for surgical procedures exceeded pre-COVID levels
Needham analysts calculated worldwide searches for 20 surgical procedures as a percentage of pre-COVID search levels (red). The gray line shows the quarterly average of searches. Pre-COVID searches were calculated as the average of weekly search data for the first seven weeks of 2020.
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Searches for the elective surgeries increased by 10% during the week ending June 10 compared to the prior-year period. Compared to the previous week, about half of the procedures saw increases, with gallbladder surgery searches seeing the largest growth, while heart bypass surgery declined the most in searches.
Needham, which runs the reports on Google search trends weekly, has found that Google Trends interest levels are highly correlated with growth of the medical device market.
Searches for procedures were correlated with medtech market growth
Needham analysts found strong correlation between procedure searches and medtech market growth.
Permission granted by Needham and Company
As procedure volumes have increased since the start of 2023, some medical device companies raised their revenue expectations for the full year. They include Edwards Lifesciences, Stryker, Zimmer Biomet and Becton Dickinson.