Useful Information

May 2, 2002

Dear Doctor,

High mercury levels found in two beauty creams

I would like to bring to your attention two beauty creams bearing the names of "Rosedew" (??? / ??) and "La Rose Blanche", which were found to contain high mercury content following recent tests by the Customs and Excise Department.  The Department of Health has informed members of the public who have used any of the two beauty creams to contact the Department for counseling, testing and management.

Should you encounter patients who have a history of using any of the two beauty creams, please advise them to contact the Department of Health at telephone hotline number 2961 8968 for further management.  The Department of Health will offer counseling and arrange for blood/urine mercury testing as appropriate.

Some information notes about mercury poisoning are attached for your reference.  They can also be viewed at our website at http://www.info.gov.hk/dh/useful/ltod/mercury.htm.

If you would like to report patients suspected to have heavy metal poisoning due to whatever cause, please refer to the following numbers of the respective Regional Office under the Department of Health:

Region	Tel. no.
Hong Kong	2961 8791
Kowloon	2199 9149
New Territories (East)	2158 5107
New Territories (West)	2615 8571

Yours sincerely,

(Dr Thomas Tsang)
for Director of Health