Insulin is a crucial compound for the management of diabetes, both type 1 and type 2; however, it is more commonly used for the management of type 2 diabetes. Insulin pen device is a fairly new innovation and was first introduced over 20 years ago. It has evolved to offer significant advantages as compared to the vial and syringe. The pens come in two forms - disposable and reusable. Disposable insulin pens contain a prefilled cartridge. The entire pen is discarded when the cartridge is vacant. On the other hand, reusable pens allow the patient to replace the cartridge when empty.

Insulin pen devices are now being used by diabetic patients across the world; nonetheless, there are geographical variations in the use of disposable and reusable pens. In some part of the world, the vial and syringe is the most popular method till now, whereas in other parts the use of disposable or reusable pens is more common. The variation in usage is due to many factors including physician/patient preference and awareness, patient access to insulin, and cost. The use of insulin in inpatient is very common, and the use of insulin pens offers substantial benefits in this type of patients, both during the admission period and after discharge from the hospital. This widespread use of insulin pens is likely to fuel the growth of the disposable insulin pen market.

Insulin pens typically deliver anywhere between .5 and 80 units of insulin at a time. The maximum dose is dependent on the patient and it varies among pens. The insulin pen a patient use depends upon the type of insulin he/she requires, the number of units needed per shot, and the availability of pens. The needles that are used in these pens vary in shapes and sizes.

Disposable insulin pen Market Taxonomy

On the basis of type of diabetes the global disposable insulin pen market is classified into:

Type I diabetes

Type II diabetes

On the basis of distribution, the global disposable insulin pen market is classified into:

Hospitals

Clinics

Chemists

Others

Increasing prevalence of diabetes and rising geriatric population will drive the overall disposable insulin pen market

As per International Diabetic Federation (IDF) around 415 million people suffered from diabetes in 2015. This number is likely to increase to 642 million by 2040. According to American Diabetic Association, about 29.1 million people in America had diabetes in 2012; that is a whopping 9.3% of the population. Out of this population, 21.0 million were diagnosed. As the number of patients with diabetes is poised to increase, the need for insulin is also set to rise, thereby fuelling the global disposable insulin pen market during the forecast period.

Asia Pacific, especially in countries such as India and China, the demand for disposable insulin pens is expected to gain significant traction. According to American Diabetic Association, around 60% of the world’s diabetic population lives in Asia. The prevalence of diabetes in India and China is 8.6% and 9.6% respectively. India is known as the diabetes capital of the world with more than 60 million diabetics in the country. As the number is on the rise, so is the need for disposable insulin pen. As more and more patients are diagnosed with diabetes, more and more insulin pens will be needed. Since disposable insulin pen is easier to use than the reusable variety, the global disposable insulin pen market potential is fairly high and is likely to increase in the coming years.

Chemists are the most preferred channel for players in the disposable insulin pen market. Once a patient is diagnosed with diabetes, the need for hospitalization decreases compared to insulin administration by the patient. Most patients rely on diagnostic centers for getting their tests done and are likely to obtain their insulin pens from the chemist once the test results are positive. Therefore, a patient is likely to go the chemist for obtaining these pens, thereby fuelling the growth of disposable insulin pen in the chemist shops.

Some of the companies operating in the disposable insulin pen market are Levemir, BD, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi-Aventis.