Matej Mikulic
Research expert covering health, pharma & medtech
Non-prescription drugs in Italy - Statistics and facts
In 2023, revenues of Italian pharmacies generated by selling drugs amounted to 17.5 billion euros, including roughly three billion in non-prescription drugs, which accounted for 17.2 percent of the Italian pharmaceutical market. In the European market, a sub-group of non-prescription drugs are self-medication drugs: non-prescription drugs that are purchased spontaneously by the citizen and with access to communication to the public (for example through advertising). Sometimes they are also referred to as OTC (over-the-counter) drugs. Most of these drugs are sold in pharmacies, followed by parapharmacies, which have almost doubled in number in Italy over the past decade, and large-scale retail. In Italy, Tachipirina, used as a remedy against fever and moderate pain manifestations, led the sales of OTC and non-prescription drugs, ranking second, third, and fourth, as sold in its different forms.
