A recent review revealed that 0.5 per cent of FDA-approved orthopaedic devices were designed exclusively for children and young people.
Similarly, only 2 per cent of approved AI medical devices for radiology were labelled for paediatric use.
Even looking through a broader scope beyond health technology and medical devices, only 5 per cent of the UK’s national research budget is spent on paediatrics, and government funding for children’s services fell by 22 per cent between 2010 and 2022.
Given that children and young people make up around 20% of the UK population, this highlights the significant age-related gap in paediatric health research and technology innovation.
