Health & medicine fact checks

Die Corona-Epidemie – eine perfide Erfindung? In einem vielfach geklickten Video behauptet ein bekannter Corona-Skeptiker, ein britischer Geschäftsmann habe bereits im Oktober 2015 ein Patent für ein «Covid-19-Testsystem» angemeldet. Im Webportal des Europäischen Patentamtes (EPA) fänden sich unter der Patentnummer «US2020279585» die entsprechenden Belege. «Hier wusste schon sehr früh jemand, dass man ab 2019 mit einer Erkrankung Geld verdienen kann, die es erst 4 Jahre später geben soll», so der Kommentar zum Video.

Publisher’s rating: Die Behauptung ist falsch. Im Jahr 2015 sicherte sich der Erfinder das Patent auf ein Verfahren zur Erfassung biometrischer Daten. Die Werte können auf eine Virus-Infektion hindeuten - etwa COVID-19. Im Mai dieses Jahres präzisierte der Patentinhaber darum seine Idee. Erst seither firmiert sie unter dem Titel «System and Method for Testing for COVID-19».

In Corona-Zeiten ist die Alltagsmaske für viele Schulkinder ein treuer Begleiter. Häufig wird die Behauptung vorgebracht, der Mund-Nasen-Schutz gefährde die Gesundheit der Schülerinnen und Schüler. Auf Facebook wird in verschiedenen Varianten sogar behauptet, die Maskenpflicht habe bei mehreren Kindern in Deutschland zum Tod geführt. In einem Posting (hier archiviert) ist etwa die Rede von einem 6-jährigen Mädchen aus Schweinfurt und einem Mädchen aus Wiesbaden, die gestorben sein sollen. In einem anderen Posting (hier archiviert) ist zusätzlich die Rede von einem 13-jährigen Mädchen, welches in Rheinland-Pfalz aufgrund des «Maskenzwangs» zusammengebrochen und gestorben sein soll.

Publisher’s rating: Es gibt keinerlei Beweise für die vermeintlichen Todesfälle in Deutschland. Wenn es sich um eine luftdurchlässige Alltagsmaske handelt, besteht laut Medizinern für Kinder keine Gefahr.

The review examined social-media posts alleging that children in Germany had died because of mask requirements. It addressed claims about a six-year-old in Schweinfurt, a girl in Wiesbaden and a 13-year-old in Rheinland-Pfalz. Its investigation found that the accounts did not establish that masks caused those deaths—and found no evidence that two of the alleged deaths had happened at all. For Schweinfurt, the review reports that a claim about a six-year-old collapsing in a school bus began circulating online, but police in Lower Franconia said no six-year-old had become ill or died for that reason in Schweinfurt or nearby. For Wiesbaden, the public prosecutor’s office told dpa it knew of no such case. The review also notes that a post attributed its story to an unnamed doctor in Weinheim, but does not present that attribution as confirmation. The Rheinland-Pfalz case was different: a 13-year-old student did collapse on a school bus near Wörth am Rhein on September 7 and later died in hospital. The review says the cause was still unclear in information released by the Landau prosecutor on October 1, with further examinations commissioned. It reports that the social-media assertion blaming “mask compulsion” had no source. Thus, the fact of the death did not substantiate the claimed cause.

"Trump llamó al coronavirus un "fraude".

Publisher’s rating: Falso

Ellos sabían lo que estaba pasando y no te lo dijeron (sobre el covid-19)

Publisher’s rating: Verdad

The Regeneron antibody cocktail President Donald Trump received is made from fetal stem cells

Publisher’s rating: False

"La Administración Trump no tiene un plan ante el Covid-19"

Publisher’s rating: Falso

MEDICAMENTO PARA TRATAR COVID-19 EN DONALD TRUMP PUEDE CAUSAR EUFORIA Y TRASTORNOS PSIQUIÁTRICOS

Publisher’s rating: Verdadero

"The president said it [coronavirus] was a hoax."

Publisher’s rating: "He did not. Senator Harris criticised President Trump's handling of the pandemic, accusing him of calling it ""a hoax"" and said the administration ""minimised the seriousness of it"". President Trump did not directly call the virus a ""hoax""."

ആദ്യം കൊറോണ വൈറസ് രോഗിക്ക് ചൂടുള്ള ഭക്ഷണം കുരുമുളകും ചേർത്ത് നൽകുക, 24 മണിക്കൂറിനുള്ളിൽ അവൻ അല്ലെങ്കിൽ അവൾ സുഖം പ്രാപിക്കും.

Publisher’s rating: FALSE

The review investigates a viral WhatsApp claim that a person with coronavirus will recover within 24 hours after being given hot food with pepper. Vishvas News says it received the post for fact-checking and found no evidence that adding pepper to food cures coronavirus in that timeframe. Its conclusion is that pepper cannot cure or prevent coronavirus. To assess the claim, the review consulted a World Health Organization report of COVID-19 myths and a Virginia Department of Health page about COVID-19 myths. It reports that WHO said hot peppers may make food tasty but cannot prevent or treat COVID-19, and that Virginia’s health department likewise said pepper added to food cannot protect against or cure the disease. These sources address the central proposed remedy, rather than the claim’s promised 24-hour recovery. The review also quotes Dr. Vimal N of the Ministry of AYUSH, who told Vishvas News there was no evidence pepper cures the infection and that coronavirus had no treatment at the time of his statement. Together, the cited sources do not support pepper as a cure; the review identifies the viral post as false.

«[Immuni] avrebbe una sua efficacia solo se ogni cittadino italiano, di ogni età, avesse l’app sul proprio smartphone»

Publisher’s rating: Pinocchio andante

President Donald Trump claimed doctors said 'they've never seen a body kill the coronavirus' like his body

Publisher’s rating: False

The claim concerned a widely shared Facebook post that presented a supposed closed-caption transcript of President Donald Trump saying doctors had “never seen a body kill the Coronavirus like my body,” followed by a claim about his DNA. USA TODAY traced the image to a video Trump posted on October 3, 2020, from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. The review reports that the post’s caption did not match the video: Trump made no statement about his body or DNA in the four-minute clip, and none of six other videos he posted that week contained the alleged quotation. The review compared the fabricated caption with Trump’s actual comments about his health and treatment. In the October 3 video, he said he had arrived at the hospital feeling unwell and now felt much better; he also described potential cures as “miracles coming down from God.” On October 7, he said he felt great after taking an antibody therapy made by Regeneron, and on October 8 he again praised the medicine. These remarks support the review’s distinction between Trump boasting about a rapid recovery and making the specific claim attributed to him in the Facebook post. The review also supplies context that could make the fabricated caption seem plausible: Trump did publicly describe feeling well and recovering quickly. But it says he credited his improvement to treatment, not to his body or genetics. It reports that he received a single dose of Regeneron before being transferred to Walter Reed, followed at the hospital by Remdesivir and steroids. The review therefore concludes that the quoted claim was fabricated, while distinguishing it from Trump’s genuine public remarks about his recovery and treatment.

« Voilà ce que va nous proposer notre gouvernement.... Sympa n'est-ce pas ? », lit-on sur une publication Facebook en Suisse. Une photographie d’une page dactylographiée accompagne le commentaire. Y sont surlignés des passages relatifs à la Suisse. « On sait que le vaccin n’a été testé jusqu’à présent que sur 45 volontaires sains, qui ont tous eu des effets secondaires dévastateurs nécessitant une hospitalisation ». Le paragraphe se concentre sur le soi-disant fait que « ce vaccin modifie votre ADN pour toujours ». (Voir le post archivé)

Publisher’s rating: Il est hautement improbable que l’introduction d’un ARN messager dans un vaccin modifie l’ADN humain. De plus, le nombre 45 se réfère aux 45 personnes volontaires en mai. Quatre d'entre elles ont présenté des effets secondaires qui n'ont pas mis leur vie en danger.

Abraham Weintraub questiona a necessidade de vacinação contra a covid-19 para quem tem menos de 35 anos

Publisher’s rating: ENGANOSO: Com números equivocados e afirmações desconectadas dos fatos, ex-ministro do governo Bolsonaro insinua que pessoas abaixo de 35 anos não deveriam ser vacinadas contra a covid-19

"President Trump and I have a plan to improve healthcare and protect pre-existing conditions for every American."

Publisher’s rating: There are no details about how the Trump administration plans to protect people with pre-existing conditions.

The statement was made by Vice-President Mike Pence during his televised debate with Kamala Harris ahead of the 3 November 2020 US election. The review assessed the specific promise that the Trump administration had a plan to improve healthcare and protect people with pre-existing conditions. It contrasted that promise with the existing Affordable Care Act (ACA), which made it illegal to deny coverage to people with such conditions, and noted that the Trump administration had sought to repeal and replace the law and was seeking to dismantle it in the Supreme Court. [S1] The review also considered a September executive order signed by President Trump. It said the order declared that “access to health insurance despite underlying health conditions should be maintained,” but found that it supplied no details about how that commitment would be carried out or funded. The distinction is central: the order expressed a goal, but the review found no operational plan in the material it examined. [S1] The review’s conclusion is limited to the available details of the administration’s stated protection plan; it does not say that the executive order contained no commitment, or that the ACA’s protections were already absent. Its explanation instead places the broad promise alongside the administration’s efforts against the ACA and the lack of specifics on implementation or funding. [S1]

Een man gebruikt een CO2-meter om eerst de kamerlucht, de lucht voor zijn mond zonder mondkapje en dan met mondkapje te meten. De zuurstofgehaltes dalen bij iedere stap, terwijl de CO2-gehaltes lijken te stijgen. Daarmee wil hij aantonen dat een mondmasker dragen ongezond zou zijn. "De regel in kantoren is dat boven de 700 ppm het toxisch gaat worden, en dit is een waarde 4 of 5 keer zo hoog."

Publisher’s rating: De video is misleidend. CO2-meters zijn niet gemaakt om accuraat kleine ruimtes, zoals achter een mondmasker, te meten. Voor een gezond persoon zal het dragen van een mondmasker geen enkel negatief effect hebben op de gezondheid.

Bei vielen Millionen Coronatests weltweit wird aus dem Einzelfall einer US-Patientin eine verallgemeinernde Horrormeldung gemacht: Angeblich besteht beim Nasenabstrich die Gefahr, dass mit den Teststäbchen im Rachenraum bis zum Gehirnbereich vorgedrungen werden könne. Anfang Oktober 2020 wird im Netz die Geschichte einer Frau verbreitet (hier archiviert), die angeblich «lebensgefährlich» am Gehirn verletzt worden sei - vermeintlicher Grund: der Corona-Nasenabstrich. «Der Tupfer beschädigte einen Teil ihres Gehirns», heißt es an anderer Stelle (hier archiviert).

Publisher’s rating: Richtig ist, dass bei der Patientin Hirnflüssigkeit austrat. Allerdings hatte die Frau schon lange vor dem Coronatest einen Riss im Rachenbereich. Die Ärzte machen zudem keine Angaben dazu, ob sie sich jemals in Lebensgefahr befand.

The online stories described a US woman as having been dangerously injured by a COVID-19 nasal swab, including claims that the swab damaged her brain. The review says the underlying medical report concerned a woman tested before a planned hernia operation who later reported a runny nose, headache, stiff neck, sensitivity to light, vomiting and a metallic taste. Testing of her nasal fluid indicated leakage of cerebrospinal fluid; scans found a 1.8-centimetre skull defect associated with an encephalocele. These findings establish that fluid leakage occurred, but do not by themselves establish that the swab created the defect or that the patient was in life-threatening danger. (S1) The review cites the doctors’ comparison of the patient’s scans with a 2017 CT: they concluded that the encephalocele had existed at least since then. The doctors also wrote that they believed the swab had not caused an injury to the bony skull base, while saying it had negatively affected the pre-existing encephalocele. The review reports that the defect was repaired surgically. Thus, the evidence supports a complication after the test in a patient with a prior defect, not the viral claim that the swab caused a new brain injury. (S1) The review notes that the medical study did not say the woman had been in life-threatening danger. It also describes the case as the only documented one of its kind at that time and reports the doctors’ recommendation to investigate alternative testing methods for people with a history of throat problems or unusual nasal anatomy. Those qualifications concern the specific patient and do not establish that nasal swabs generally pose the danger claimed in the online posts. (S1)

Trump's hospital records reveal he's 322 pounds

Publisher’s rating: False

The claim circulated online on Oct. 5, 2020, after Donald Trump announced he had COVID-19: posts asserted that hospital records showed he weighed 322 pounds, rather than the 239 pounds reported by his prior doctor. USA TODAY examined whether records from Trump’s stay at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center had been made public and compared the claim with the latest physical results released by the White House. The review found that the White House had not released Trump’s hospital records. It reported that public updates from Trump’s physicians and administration officials discussed his treatment and symptoms but did not disclose his weight. The claim therefore had no released hospital record behind it in the evidence examined by the review. The latest annual physical results the review cited, released by the White House on June 3, listed Trump at 244 pounds. The article also noted that his earlier physicals listed 243 pounds in February 2019 and 239 pounds the year before. It said there was no indication he had gained 78 pounds over the preceding months or that the administration had lied about his physical results. These records do not establish a hospital weight of 322 pounds.

China comprou vacina da Suécia para aplicar nos chineses, enquanto vendeu para o Brasil os imunizantes desenvolvidos na Ásia

Publisher’s rating: ENGANOSO: Ao contrário do que afirma uma publicação no Facebook, os chineses têm realizado testes de suas vacinas na população. O post também desconsidera que vários países além da China têm buscado diversificar seus fornecedores de vacinas

Op Facebook gaat een lijst rond met bewijzen die moeten aantonen dat de pandemie gepland werd. Zo waren er op voorhand verschillende signalen waaruit je dat kon afleiden. "Drie maanden voor de uitbraak, verklaarde het GPMB (het Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, red.) dat de wereld zich moest voorbereiden op een globale coronavirus epidemie", valt er onder meer in de lijst te lezen. Het bericht zou afkomstig zijn van de website 'StopWorldControl.com', die zich verzet tegen de 'wereldwijde dictatuur door de rijke elite'. Maar kloppen de bewijzen?

Publisher’s rating: De lijst staat vol met desinformatie, misleidende feiten en oude hoaxen die in het verleden al werden ontkracht. De beweringen vormen geen bewijs dat de pandemie gepland zou zijn.

The review examines a Facebook post listing supposed advance warnings as evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic was planned. One example in the post says the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB) warned of a global coronavirus epidemic three months before the outbreak. The review checks that assertion against the GPMB’s 2019 annual report and distinguishes a general warning about pandemic threats from a warning about the later coronavirus outbreak. The review says the GPMB published its annual report in September 2019, warning of increasing pandemic threats that could damage the global economy and cause millions of deaths. But it reports that the new coronavirus, which broke out in Wuhan in December 2019, was not mentioned. This makes the post’s description of the report misleading: the report discussed pandemic preparedness, not a specific impending coronavirus epidemic. The article also assesses other items in the list rather than treating them as independent proof of coordination. It says claims that COVID-19 test kits were distributed in 2017 and 2018 are incorrect, and describes the confusion as involving existing goods later used in the pandemic response. It says an Institute for Disease Modelling simulation developed with Bill Gates in 2018 modeled a possible future deadly influenza pandemic, not COVID-19. The article further distinguishes Bill Gates’s October 2019 Event 201 exercise from the pandemic, describing its scenario as fictional and reporting no evidence that the exercise was intended to set up the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Taken together, the review finds that the list mixes inaccurate claims with real reports and exercises presented without their limits or context. The evidence it discusses does not establish that the pandemic was planned.

Trump calificó al coronavirus como un engaño

Publisher’s rating: Engañoso