BEIJING - Chinese hospitals have been ordered to stop using medicines, found to have contaminated capsules, and help authorities to recall them.

The State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) announced Friday that ten batches of medications produced by nine pharmacy firms were found to have used capsules which contained excessive levels of chromium, said a statement from the Ministry of Health said.

Hospitals are asked to report to local health authorities whether they have these medicines and how many they have. They are urged to cooperate with health authorities to recall the contaminated medicines, according to the statement.

Chromium can be toxic and carcinogenic if ingested in large amounts.