Sensor use is expected to increase from $559 million in 2013 to $1.2 billion by 2018, according to a report on the home health care market from Yole Développement of Lyon, France.

Home health care refers to the at-home care provided to a person with special needs. This includes people who are aging, chronically ill, recovering from surgery or disabled.

The proportion of the world’s population aged 60 and over will grow from 16 percent to 25 percent from 2000 to 2050, an increase linked to the growth of chronic diseases like Alzheimer’s, diabetes and cancer, among others. The rising cost of health care systems and a shortage of physicians also contribute to this prediction.

Photonic and nonphotonic instruments including photodetectors, IR temperature sensors, electrochemical biosensors, flow sensors, gyroscopes, humidity sensors, microfluidic chips and more were investigated in the report. Their applications in the home-care market can be used for anything from detecting falls to monitoring tremors in Parkinson’s disease.