Hong Kong’s Department of Health raided two retail shops in Sheung Shui Thursday for suspected illegal sale and possession of Part I poisons and unregistered pharmaceutical products.
During routine market surveillance, the department found the shops were offering for sale various types of cold and cough liquid medicines labelled in Japanese and targeted at children.
With no Hong Kong registration numbers visible on the packaging, the DH believes the medicines are unregistered pharmaceutical products. However, they were labeled as containing methylephedrine amongst the active ingredients and on was also labelled as containing dihydrocodeine.
Medicines containing methylephedrine or dihydrocodeine are classified as Part I poisons. They are mainly used in preparations for the relief of cold and cough symptoms. Side effects of methylephedrine include tachycardia, anxiety, restlessness and insomnia while dihydrocodeine may cause nausea, vomiting and constipation. Parents should not use cough and cold medicines to treat children aged under six without advice from health-care professionals.
According to the territory’s Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance (Cap 138), all pharmaceutical products must be registered with the Pharmacy and Poisons Board of Hong Kong before they can be sold legally in the market. Part I poisons should be sold at pharmacies under the supervision of registered pharmacists. Illegal sale or possession of unregistered pharmaceutical products and Part I poisons are criminal offences with a maximum penalty for each offence a fine of $100,000 and two years’ imprisonment.
The DH says its investigations are continuing.
A spokesman urged members of the public not to buy or use unregistered pharmaceutical products from the market as such products have not been evaluated by the board and their safety, quality and efficacy are not guaranteed. All registered pharmaceutical products should carry a Hong Kong registration number on the package in the format of “HK-XXXXX”.
Anyone who has bought the products seized yesterday “should stop using them immediately”, the department said in a statement.
“They should consult health-care professionals for advice if they are in doubt or their children feel unwell after using the products concerned. They may submit them to the DH’s Drug Office at Room 1856, Wu Chung House, 213 Queen’s Rd East, Wan Chai, Hong Kong, during office hours for disposal.”