March 30, 2012

A 53-year-old man has been arrested for the illegal sale of two boxes of unregistered cold and flu medicine.
 
He was apprehended in Mong Kok today in a joint operation by Police and the Department of Health, which obtained the medicine through an auction website.
 
The drug is manufactured by Taisho Pharmaceutical, and contains paracetamol, a medicine used to ease pain and fever. Although the side effects are usually mild, high doses can result in liver damage.
 
Pharmaceutical products must be registered with the Pharmacy & Poisons Board before they can be sold. Unregistered products have not been evaluated by the board and may be unsafe.
 
The department urged people not to use the drug.