Overall revenues in the North American diagnostic imaging equipment market will surpass $9 billion by the year 2018, according to market research and consulting firm GlobalData.

In the report “North America Diagnostic Imaging Market Outlook to 2018," the firm said the combined revenues in the U.S. and Canadian markets will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.8 percent between 2011 and 2018, reaching $9.2 billion.

The fastest growing category will be MRI systems, according to GlobalData. After a period of sluggish growth the last seven years, MRI will experience a 7.4 percent CAGR from 2011 to 2018 and represent the largest share of diagnostic imaging equipment revenues by 2018. The current largest category by revenue, ultrasound systems, will slip to number two, but still demonstrate a CAGR of 5.1 percent for 2011-2018. Other big gainers will be CT systems and nuclear imaging equipment, each with projected CAGRs of 5 percent until 2018.

The contrast media injector market, which had shown the fastest growth among equipment categories the past seven years with a 4 percent CAGR, will dip slightly to a 3.8 percent CAGR for 2011-2018. Angiography suite technology is the slowest revenue growth category for 2011-2018, with a 0.1 percent CAGR, according to GlobalData.