A growing number of doctors may soon start adopting picture archiving and communication systems, as a new report predicts that the market for these products will expand significantly in the coming years.

The MarketResearch.com report estimates that the use of PACS will grow at a compounded annual rate of 10 percent between now and 2017. This will take the total value of the industry to $5.4 billion by 2017, up from $2.8 billion in 2010.

Government incentives and rapid improvements in the technology are the primary reasons for the high expectations, according to the paper. The authors point out that PACS can now deliver much higher quality products than in years past, and the government is willing to pay providers to use such tools through its meaningful use incentive program.

Furthermore, an aging patient population will force physicians to find new ways to efficiently store growing amounts of data.

The report's authors also believe that the growing use of PACS will lead to continued development and innovation. As products continue to improve in quality, it will spur greater demand among physicians and send adoption rates even higher.