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PeakMetrics / Fact Checks

Health & medicine fact checks

Explore claims publishers have checked about health & medicine. Read their original ratings and follow the evidence.

13,674 published reviews in this topic

ComprovaHealth & medicine

Anvisa considerou dado de imunogenicidade da Coronavac inadequado

Publisher’s rating: ENGANOSO: Dirigente da Anvisa disse, de fato, que dados de imunogenicidade - a capacidade que uma vacina tem para induzir o sistema imunológico a produzir anticorpos - da CoronaVac eram inadequados. A Anvisa explicou, no entanto, que não há questionamentos em relação à segurança da vacina.

Fact CrescendoHealth & medicine

Claim: Karnataka health department explained that these doctors not acting

Publisher’s rating: False

The claim concerns a video from Tumakuru, Karnataka, that appeared to show a nurse and two officials simulating COVID-19 vaccinations. The review says the footage circulated with an allegation that the district health officer, a medical college principal and a nurse should be dismissed for staging vaccination. It identifies the two people shown receiving injections as college principal Dr. Rajini and district health officer Nagendrappa. The review’s account of their explanation was that both had already been vaccinated and posed for a repeat shot after media personnel asked for footage. The central distinction is that the video showed a staged pose, but the review found that this did not establish they had avoided vaccination. To check the explanation, the review reports finding a video of Rajini on the Karnataka health department’s official Facebook page. In it, she said she had been vaccinated on the 16th and that media personnel later requested a scene showing vaccination. The review also says its Hindi team contacted Rajini, who provided evidence that she had been vaccinated. It reports that Nagendrappa likewise said he had already received the vaccine and posed again at the media’s request, and that the Tumakuru district commissioner confirmed the account. As further corroboration, the review cites a News Minute report quoting local cable television reporters who said the officials posed again as requested. On this evidence, the review concluded that the claim they had deceived the public by not getting vaccinated was false.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturHealth & medicine

«Nicht zu glauben: Uni-Klinik Leipzig schließt Corona-Intensivstation... keine Geschäfte...», titelte im August 2020 das Online-Medium «NeoPresse» (hier archiviert). Aktuell kursiert der Artikel erneut in den sozialen Medien - als Beleg dafür, dass die Corona-Pandemie längst nicht so bedrohlich sei, wie oft dargestellt.

Publisher’s rating: Die Nachricht ist eine Falschinformation - und war es auch schon im August: Anfang September 2020 wurde vorübergehend die Corona-Ambulanz des Leipziger Uniklinikums geschlossen, nicht aber die Intensivstation.

The claim concerns a NeoPresse article saying that Leipzig University Hospital had closed its Covid intensive-care unit. The dpa review distinguishes that claim from the actual September 2020 closure: the hospital temporarily shut its Corona-Ambulanz, a facility for testing people with suspected symptoms, not an intensive-care ward. The review says the clinic’s stations treating patients seriously ill with Covid remained in operation. Evidence: “Zum 1. September 2020 wurde die Ambulanz vorübergehend geschlossen - offiziell wegen rückläufiger Fall- und Testzahlen.” and “Zu keiner Zeit wurde jedoch die Corona-Intensivstation des Leipziger Uniklinikums geschlossen.” The review explains that the ambulance was a test centre without further treatment facilities or beds, making it materially different from an intensive-care unit. It also reports that the ambulance reopened on 10 November as the second wave grew. The closure therefore did not establish that the hospital had stopped providing intensive care for Covid patients. Evidence: “Denkbar ist, dass es zu Verwechslungen gekommen ist. Denn anders als im «NeoPresse»-Artikel behauptet, wurde Anfang September eben nur die Ambulanz geschlossen, also ein Testzentrum ohne weitere Behandlungsmöglichkeiten oder gar Betten.” and “Mit Anschwellen der zweiten Corona-Welle wurde die Ambulanz zum 10. November wieder eröffnet”. The review also cites the hospital’s contemporaneous account of intensive-care activity in January 2021. A hospital spokesperson said the wards for treating people seriously ill with Covid had always been operating; a 18 January hospital post reported 40 Covid patients in intensive care and 79 on regular wards. This later evidence reinforces the distinction between temporarily closing an outpatient testing facility and closing intensive-care capacity. Evidence: “Die Stationen zur Behandlung schwer an Covid-19 Erkrankter seien stets in Betrieb gewesen.” and “Seit über 14 Tagen ist die Situation am UKL gleichbleibend angespannt. Auch heute sind 40 Covid-19-Patienten auf der Intensivstation und 79 auf Normalstation - 119 Patienten insgesamt.”

Deutsche Presse-AgenturHealth & medicine

Seit in Europa gegen Corona geimpft wird, kursieren in den sozialen Medien zahlreiche Meldungen über angebliche Impfschäden. So wird etwa in einem Facebook-Posting (hier archiviert) behauptet: «Norwegen verhängt ein Impfverbot für Pfizer und BoiNTech (sic!) Impfstoffe, nachdem es 23 Menschen das Leben kostete!» Als Quelle wird «Servus TV» angegeben.

Publisher’s rating: Es gibt kein Impfverbot in Norwegen. Die norwegische Gesundheitsbehörde «Folkehelseinstituttet» (FHI) hat ihre Impfempfehlung lediglich ergänzt: Bei sehr gebrechlichen oder unheilbar kranken Menschen soll individuell geprüft werden, ob der Nutzen einer Impfung größer ist als das Risiko möglicher Nebenwirkungen. Es wird noch untersucht, inwieweit die Todesfälle ursächlich mit der Corona-Impfung zusammenhängen.

The post claimed that Norway had prohibited Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines after 23 people died, attributing the claim to Servus TV. The review checked the Norwegian agencies’ statements and the cited source. It reports that Norway’s medicines agency said 23 deaths had been reported by 14 January 2021 in which a connection to Covid-19 vaccination was suspected; investigation of those reports was not complete. The number therefore referred to reported deaths under investigation, not to deaths established as caused by vaccination. The agency’s statement, updated on 19 January, said the reports would be assessed jointly by the medicines and health authorities and that they had not changed Norway’s vaccination strategy. The review found no announcement of a ban in that statement or in the cited Servus TV material. It also describes a narrower change: the health agency advised careful individual weighing of benefits and risks for very frail people and patients who were terminally ill. For most older people, it said, the risk of severe Covid-19 was greater than the risk of possible vaccine side effects. The review adds important context to the timing of the deaths. Norway was vaccinating older people and nursing-home residents with serious underlying conditions; the medicines agency’s chief physician said common side effects such as fever and feeling unwell might contribute to a severe outcome for some frail patients. The review also notes that deaths occur regularly among nursing-home residents, while emphasizing that whether the reported cases were caused by vaccination was still being investigated. These qualifications do not support the post’s claim of a nationwide vaccine ban.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturHealth & medicine

Fotos von einer polizeilichen Durchsuchung in einer Arztpraxis in Niedersachsen machen in den sozialen Netzwerken die Runde. Ein damit verbundener Vorwurf auf Facebook lautet (hier archiviert): «hier wird versucht eine mutige Ärztin, die sich gegen eine Impfung zu Covid-19 ausspricht und die Coronamaßnahmen der Politik kritisch hinterfragt, einzuschüchtern und zum Schweigen zu bringen!»

Publisher’s rating: Der Facebook-Beitrag unterschlägt eine wichtige Information: Wie die Staatsanwaltschaft mitteilt, wird gegen die Ärztin wegen des Verdachts ermittelt, dass sie falsche Atteste zur Befreiung von der Maskenpflicht ausgestellt haben könnte.

The post framed the police search at a doctor’s practice in southern Lower Saxony as an attempt to silence a doctor because she opposed COVID-19 vaccination and criticized government measures. The review found that this account left out a central part of the reported reason for the search: according to information the Göttingen public prosecutor’s office gave dpa, an investigation was underway over suspicion that the doctor had issued false certificates exempting people from wearing masks. The report describes an allegation under investigation, not a finding that the doctor was guilty.

Deutsche Presse-AgenturHealth & medicine

Laboratoria worden volgens sociale media-gebruikers door de Wereldgezondheidsorganisatie (WHO) geadviseerd om het aantal cycli bij PCR-coronatesten te verminderen. Gebruikers op Facebook delen een mededeling van de WHO aan laboratoria waarin dit te lezen zou zijn. Dit zal zorgen voor minder positieve resultaten, volgens de sociale mediagebruikers. Sommigen koppelen deze mededeling van de WHO, van 20 januari 2021, aan het feit dat Biden op dezelfde dag werd beëdigd als president van de Verenigde Staten.

Publisher’s rating: In de mededeling van de WHO staat niet dat de organisatie laboratoria adviseert om het aantal cycli bij PCR-testen te verlagen. Dat bevestigt de WHO zelf. De mededeling is enkel een herinnering aan laboratorium-professionals om goed volgens de handleidingen van de test-fabrikanten te blijven handelen, om zo verkeerde uitslagen te voorkomen. Voor een link tussen deze boodschap en de inauguratie van Joe Biden is geen enkel bewijs te vinden.

The claim concerns a WHO notice shared on Facebook on 20 January 2021. Users said it instructed laboratories to lower the number of PCR cycles, which they expected would mean fewer positive results; some also connected the notice to Joe Biden’s inauguration on the same day. The review examined what the notice actually told laboratory staff and whether it supported either assertion. The review says the notice did not instruct laboratories to reduce PCR cycles. Instead, it reminded them to follow the test manufacturers’ instructions. The WHO confirmed this interpretation in an email to the publisher, explaining that the message asked laboratory staff to continue following those instructions. The organization said reports of inaccurate results had, after investigation, been traced to instructions not being followed correctly. The review also describes the notice’s context: its caution concerned positive results with high Ct values, and the WHO’s stated advice was to use the latest version of the manufacturer’s instructions. It reports that an earlier version of the notice, dated 14 December 2020, conveyed the same advice. The review found no evidence connecting the WHO message to Biden’s inauguration.

Fact CrescendoHealth & medicine

Claim: Fake news shared as coconut water stored in copper vessel become poison

Publisher’s rating: False

The review investigates a circulated warning that drinking coconut water stored in a copper vessel could be fatal. It describes the underlying explanation as a claim that minerals and acid in coconut water react with copper to create copper sulfate. The review says the warning was being shared on Facebook and that a reader had asked about it through Fact Crescendo’s WhatsApp chatbot. It frames the warning as concerning for people who traditionally store drinking water in copper vessels for perceived health benefits. [S1] To assess the claim, the review reports consulting Dr. Vikram Kumar, a government Siddha doctor in Andiyappanur, Tirupattur district. Kumar said he had not treated anyone for this alleged harm and explained that producing copper sulfate requires sulfuric acid. The review says coconut water contains mineral salts including potassium, sodium, calcium and magnesium, but no sulfuric acid; Kumar therefore rejected the proposed reaction. [S1] The review also says it checked the stated constituents of coconut water and examined how copper sulfate forms, and concludes that the claim that coconut water in a copper vessel becomes life-threatening copper sulfate is false. The supplied excerpt does not provide detailed measurements, experimental results, or a description of the copper-sulfate chemistry beyond the doctor’s explanation, so it supports reporting what the review investigated and concluded, not additional independent testing claims. [S1]