China's drug watchdog yesterday exposed 20 illegal medical instruments ads which claimed to treat illnesses ranging from shortsightedness, insomnia and snoring to prostate disease.

The names of the products and the companies violating regulations on medical instrument advertisements were made public by China's State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA).

One of China's famous medical instrument companies, Beijing's Zhoulin Bio-Spectrum Technology Inc, was on the blacklist.

Some of the ads hadn't been approved by drug administration departments; in other cases, the companies changed advertisements that had been approved before they were broadcast; some fabricated approval licenses; and others used expired licenses, said an SFDA official.

The SFDA ordered provincial drug administration departments to closely supervise the ads of the companies fingered, and cooperate with the industry and commerce administration to punish companies that violate advertising rules.