Health authorities Wednesday suddenly ordered the recall of the capsulized and bottled forms of Po Chai Pills, a well-known proprietary Chinese medicine sold in pharmacies and supermarkets that has been used to treat several generations of Hong Kong people. The news sent a shock wave through the local community.

Po Chai Pills were developed by the Li family in Foshan during the late Qing period. The medicine has been widely used by people in Hong Kong and Guangdong for more than half a century to relieve symptoms of fever, intoxication, vomiting and jetlag. It is hard to find somebody in this part of the world who has never taken this medicine.

The trigger that prompted the Department of Health (DoH) in Hong Kong to issue a recall order to the medicine's licensed manufacturer Li Chung Shing Tong (Holdings) Ltd was the detection of a substance called sibutramine by health authorities in Singapore. Sibutramine is a Western medicine used as an appetite suppressant. It has side effects including increased blood pressure and heart rate, psychosis and possibly convulsions. It could even increase the risk of stroke and is considered potentially carcinogenic.

The DoH later tested the medicine samples and confimed the inspection result for its Singaporean counterpart. It has called upon the public to stop using Po Chi Pills and discard these products in their possession.

Since Po Chai Pills are so commonly used, they are being sold at all major supermarkets and chain stores. Pharmacies stock them in the thousands.

As they have been among the most popular proprietary Chinese medicines for almost a century, its recall potentially could set off a confidence crisis in proprietary Chinese medicine, and the authorities must handle the issue with care.

The Singapore case is unusual. One possible explanation is that there was a problem with the source of the medicinal ingredients. Unlike traditional Chinese medicines which contain elements from naturally grown herbs, the herbs currently used are usually artificially grown and chemical fertilizers are applied.

While it is supporting the establishment of a hospital for traditional Chinese medicine, the government should also step up its supervision of proprietary medicine. It could, for example, set up a drug-safety center to monitor quality more closely.

This is not the first time well-known brand names have been recalled. Another example was the 1995 incident when some Vitasoy products were found to have turned sour. Fortunately both the manufacturer and the administration at that time were resolute enough in their actions to defuse the crisis and restore consumer confidence.

The manufacturer this time, another time-honored brand name, should learn from that incident.

(HK Edition 03/26/2010 page1)