Venture capital investment in healthcare has exceeded that for information technology for the first time, according to new statistics released Friday.

Dow Jones VentureSource reported that the healthcare industry in 2009 was the beneficiary of more VC cash than the IT sector, raking in $7.7 billion. While that represents a 14 percent decrease from the previous year, it’s far less than the 35 percent decline in IT investment, which totaled just $6.1 billion in 2009 – the lowest showing in 13 years, and the first year on record that IT was not the venture industry’s most favored sector.


Healthcare investment was relatively robust in the fourth quarter, VentureSource reports, raising $2.1 billion for 207 deals – a 15 percent uptick from the same period last year. Most popular in the healthcare sector were biopharmaceuticals, which were funded to the tune of $4.2 billion. But interest in one of the biggest success stories from the past few years – medical devices – seems to have waned only a little in the wake of the 2008 market collapse, with manufacturers garnering $2.9 billion in VC money in 2009.


On the IT side, software investment, while still winning the lion’s share of capital, was down a sharp 43 percent from 2008. But communications and networking companies appear to have weathered the recent tumult fairly well, winning $1.5 billion in investments.


Analysts cautioned that that VC investors haven’t quite returned to the pre-crash status quo. "Venture capitalists are still treading lightly when making investments," said Jessica Canning, global research director for Dow Jones VentureSource, in a press release. "In the fourth quarter, venture deal activity returned to levels seen before the collapse of the financial markets, but capital invested continued to lag as investors gave companies just what they need to reach the next milestone."


Added Scott Austin, editor of Dow Jones VentureWire: "Some start-ups, especially those seeking first or second rounds [of funding], may be in for a rude awakening in 2010. A large share of companies are due for capital this year and the competition will be fierce."