Contents:

- Executive Summary -- Summary of the Infectious Disease Diagnostics Market --- Overview of the Infectious Disease Diagnostics Market - Market Challenges -- Key Market Challenges --- Identification of Issues and Challenges Facing the Infectious Disease Diagnostics Market - Infectious Disease Diagnostics Market -- Research Scope and Methodology -- Scope --- Research Methodology --- Exchange Rates -- Market Overview --- Introduction -- Factors Affecting Market Growth --- Market Drivers --- Monetary Funding from Global Agencies Improves Healthcare Infrastructure --- Higher Disease Incidence Rates Encourages the Uptake of Infectious Disease Diagnostics --- Government Initiatives Drive the Market --- Rise in Public Awareness --- Market Restraints --- Laboratory Groups having High Bargaining Power --- Poor Logistics Questions Product Availability --- Internal Pressures in the Clinical Laboratory Limits Purchasing Ability --- Shortage of Skilled and Qualified Health Professionals -- Key Infectious Diseases --- HIV/AIDS --- TB --- Malaria -- Market Size --- 2005 Market Opportunity - South Africa -- Market Trends --- Current Market Trends -- Competitive Analysis --- Competitive Structure - Market Engineering Strategic Recommendations -- Strategic Recommendations --- Strategic Recommendations for Market Participants - Database of Key Industry Participants -- Key Industry Participants --- Key Industry Participants in the Market - Decision Support Databases -- Key Decision Support Databases --- Number of Hospitals --- Number of Hospital Beds --- Number of Physicians --- Number of Nurses --- Number of Pharmacists --- HIV Prevalance --- Malaria Cases

Summary:

Rising Incidence of Diseases Drives Growth in the Infectious Disease Diagnostics Markets in Sub-Saharan Africa With a high incidence of infectious diseases in sub-Saharan Africa, the need for appropriate and early diagnosis of these diseases is assuming greater importance. The high disease burden, combined with increasing focus from both, regional governments and global communities to treat these diseases makes sub-Saharan Africa an attractive market for manufacturers of diagnostics for infectious diseases. Increased international funding and government initiatives such as the anti-retroviral programme (ARV) are other factors that are expected to promote growth in the infectious disease diagnostics markets in the region. Despite the region being highly disease-prone, physicians often diagnose diseases based on clinical symptoms. This often leads to misdiagnosis and over-diagnosis of diseases. Moreover, laboratories are not well equipped, which in turn, questions the accuracy of test results. Thus, physicians consider test results as an additional source of information for disease diagnosis and in several cases, diagnose diseases without laboratory confirmation. "While clinical diagnosis of infectious diseases poses several challenges, the availability of rapid diagnostic tests is likely to govern growth in the infectious disease diagnostics markets," notes the analyst of this research service. "Rapid tests which are simpler and faster to use are proving to be a viable option in sub-Saharan Africa, where diagnostics tests are performed in resource-limited settings." The availability of these rapid tests that can be performed outside laboratory settings has assisted in improving test performance and is expected to positively i pact the markets. Focus on Price Crucial for Market Success The major challenge in the markets is to develop diagnostic tests at affordable prices. "The plethora of diseases in the region offers the researchers to develop novel biomarkers both for disease identification and treatment," explains the analyst. "However, commercialisation of these tests is a challenge, as manufacturers will need to strike a balance between development costs and profit margins." Moreover, IVD manufacturers can collaborate with research institutions in sub-Saharan Africa to develop these rapid tests in order to establish their clinical utility easily. With several institutes focusing on infectious diseases, such research collaboration will aid in understanding regional diseases better, and can thus reduce their research and development (R&D) costs in developing diagnostic test kits.