The U.S. Dental Services Market ​

​According to the Health Policy Institute, a research arm of the American Dental Association, total annual U.S. dental expenditures amount to roughly $165 million. The market is experiencing strident growth, presently anticipated to reach $255 billion by 2032. This marks an impressive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.45%, considerably higher than the growth rate of the wider U.S. economy.

​Meanwhile, the rapid growth of dental chains (see graph above) continues to reshape the industry: Having reached an average annual growth rate of over 7%, considerably more robust than that of the overall industry, one may expect many more dental businesses to be consolidated by chains in coming years and decades. From the perspective of a new dental services product innovation like Steady Denty (or the potential licensee of the invention), this is generally a positive trend as it makes it easier to sell to multiple businesses/locations through a chain versus having to sell to one dental services location at a time.

Finally, there is the increasing diversification of services provided by general dental practitioners (GPs). “A growing number of GPs”, L.E.K. Insights observed in mid-2023, “have started to offer specialized services and advanced procedures like implants, extractions and orthodontics — once reserved solely for specialists — especially in patients with less complicated cases.” Of course, the wider the array of services provided by GPs, the wider the array of tools and innovations required, including the tooth/restoration steadying benefits of the Steady Denty.  ​

Market Segmentation: U.S. Dental Services Professionals

​According to numbers compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics earlier this year, there are roughly 155,000 U.S. residents working as dentists. Presently, it’s an occupation growing at an annual rate of 4%, roughly the average across occupations in the U.S. As the inventor herself has indicated, of equal or even greater relevance to the end-user community of the Steady Denty are dental assistants As of year-end 2002, there were over 370,000 dental assistants working in the U.S. and their numbers are growing at an annual rate of 7%, well over the national average for occupational growth.

​Lastly, as the device can also be used beneficially by orthodontists, it is worth noting that there are roughly 6,300 of those professionals working in the United States. So, altogether, in terms of end-users who stand to benefit from the features and benefits of the Steady Denty, there are at least 531,300 in the domestic market alone. It is important to recall that it was Ms. Fanale’s frustrations when working as a dental assistant that inspired her to brainstormed her solution, the Steady Denty.

​Market Segmentation: Dental Equipment Market

​The equipment segment of the American dental market is presently estimated at $4.15 billion, amounting to over 37% of global dental equipment sales. Considering the rapidly swelling ranks of the profession in the U.S., it is not surprising that the expanding sales of dental equipment – what all those new dentists need to complete the procedures they are paid handsomely to do -- are similarly robust. As illustrated in the bar graphs below, growing at an annual rate of 6.3%, the U.S. dental equipment market is slated to expand to $5.63 billion within only five years.

 Establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing dental equipment and supplies used by dental laboratories and offices of dentists” is how the Encyclopedia of American Industries (EAI) defines companies that participate in the “Dental Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing” industry. According to the EAI, such establishments include the manufacturers of “dental chairs, dental instrument delivery systems, dental hand instruments, dental impression material, and dental cements.

​In the context of the Steady Denty innovation, it is worth noting that much of this segment growth is driven by the adoption of what the market research firm Mordor Intelligence describes as “new product launches and technological advancements”. In other words, American dentistry is very much open to the new tools and technologies that drive dental equipment sales. Of course, this bodes well for the introduction of the Steady Denty.

​Roughly 42 percent of all U.S. adults 30 years of age or older have periodontitis”, the American Dental Association reported in 2022. Meanwhile, over 70% of U.S. residents will undergo at least one dental restoration in their lifetime and, according to the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, roughly 25% of U.S. adults between the ages of 20 and 64 suffer from dental caries, otherwise known as tooth decay. Collectively, these statistics indicate that the U.S. will continue to see robust growth in dental equipment for the foreseeable future.