How Dolo 650 touched record sales during Covid pandemic

Hyderabad: The Covid-19 pandemic saw a rise in sales of some types of medication. One of them was Dolo 650, a paracetamol brand, that saw an exponential rise in sales, especially during the Covid delta wave. Being easily available and being preferred by doctors also contributed to the growth in sales of Dolo 650. During the pandemic, the Dolo 650 brand became associated with fever.

Sales of all brands of paracetamol increased because it is the safest fever drug that was administered to practically everyone with Covid-19.

The overall income earned by paracetamol soared by 138.42 per cent between the second quarters of 2020 and 2021 when India was experiencing the second wave of the epidemic. According to statistics, Dolo 650’s income climbed by 289.6 per cent throughout the same period.

In comparison, GSK Pharmaceuticals’ Calpol had a revenue of Rs 310 crore, while Crocin had a revenue of Rs 23.6 crore.

“Dolo 650 is preferable due to its safety profile and efficacy. From our experience, individuals respond favourably to this, and the fever quickly subsides. It is not just an antipyretic treatment, but it also has an anti-inflammatory effect, and you don’t have to worry about nephrotoxicity or severe interactions as with many other drugs,” stated Dr Kiran Madhala, head of the department, Government Medical College.

“According to Lok Sabha data, sales of Dolo 500/650 mg during FY 2018-19 was 9,358 lakh tablets and peak annual sales was 31,173 lakh tablets during FY 2021-22,” he added.

Most Googled medicine

Dolo became the most-googled drug in the country, not simply in terms of sales. In fact, since the Covid epidemic, Dolo 650 has been the most searched phrase on Google, with almost 2 lakh searches. In this category, even Calpol couldn’t compete with Dolo 650.

Micro Labs Ltd, founded in 1973 in Chennai by GC Surana, manufactures Dolo with 650 milligrams (mg) of paracetamol, although most other manufacturers sell their paracetamol brand with 500 mg salt, creating the impression that Dolo 650 is more effective.

In 2019, the total sales of all paracetamol brands were roughly Rs 530 crore. By 2021, they will have earned Rs 924 crore. Dolo is the second most popular anti-fever and analgesic pill in India, with a revenue of Rs 307 crore (in 2021). Crocin is the sixth-largest, with Rs 23.6 crore in sales.

Doctors’ favourite brand

Crocin, Dolo, and Calpol are all brand names used by pharmaceutical corporations to market the same salt under their copyright. Dolo’s popularity in comparison to other paracetamol pills is unmatched, even though paracetamols are the same. Dolo’s rise, according to experts, might be related to its more basic moniker.

Another factor is Dolo’s 650 milligrams (mg) offering and the notion that it is more effective on fever. MicroLabs’ brand marketing approach of employing the medical term favoured by doctors for fever, Fever of Unknown Origin, or FUO, also played an important part in establishing its reliability.

Furthermore, in 2010, Dolo 650 was named the best-managed brand of the year and the most admired brand in India.

Since the 1960s, paracetamol, a generic salt that is a typical painkiller used to relieve pain and lower excessive body temperature, has been on the market. Paracetamol pills are the most often used cold and fever treatments, with sales skyrocketing during Covid-19.