Demand for Pulse Oximeter, other health monitoring devices has surged in pandemic

Online marketplace Snapdeal on Tuesday said there has been a surge in demand for at-home diagnostic medical devices on its platform in the last four months as people continue to fear going to diagnostic centres for medical tests due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The overall sales in ‘at-home diagnostic kits’ category for April-July this year is more than double the sales in the corresponding period last year, Snapdeal said in a statement.

Over the last four months, users have bought many personal diagnostic and health monitoring products, including pulse oximeters, blood pressure monitors, digital thermometer and glucometer. Before the coronavirus pandemic outbreak, pulse oximeter, which helps in tracking potential symptoms like heart rate and oxygen level, was a niche product with limited demand, it said.

The demand for pulse oximeter has spiked more than 300 per cent since the first COVID-19 case was identified. Most of these oximeters are priced below Rs 2,000, Snapdeal added.
The sale of this device is largely driven by metro markets such as Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Guwahati and Ahmedabad.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected just about every aspect of life, including diagnosis and monitoring of some health issues, it noted. Therefore, many Snapdeal shoppers have bought health monitoring devices to check blood pressure or diabetes from the platform, it added.

“While users are postponing non-essential medical procedures, they also want to keep track of their health so that they can stay out of hospitals. The higher sales of diagnostic equipment are driven by this desire to be careful,” according to a Snapdeal spokesperson.

Cities like Nagpur, Lucknow, Kanpur, Bhopal, Indore, Jaipur, Udaipur are the leading buyers for diagnostic products.

Cholesterol measurement meters, nebulizers, infrared thermometers and insulin pumps are other diagnostic devices that are high in demand.

Snapdeal curated a list of health monitoring devices under daily needs products category, and they range from Rs 599 to Rs 3,000, which can be easily used at home, the statement said.

There has also been a growth in demand for nutrition supplements, ayurvedic products and alternative health therapy in the last five months as compared to the pre-Covid time, it added.