A COVID-19 warning went viral on WhatsApp because it was attributed to Dr. Leong Hoe Nam.
Take a look at it, and find out why it’s just COVID-19 fake news!
Viral On WhatsApp : COVID-19 Warning By Dr. Leong Hoe Nam!
This is the COVID-19 warning that has gone viral on WhatsApp, because it was attributed to Dr. Leong Hoe Nam.
You may know him as the Singaporean doctor who has been interviewed on radio and TV very often.
The viral message is long, so just skip to the next section for the facts!
Dr Leong Hoe Nam who gave an interview in mandarin today !
Dr Leong said the reason why the fully vaccinated people are getting Covid ! Reason is because the people who are getting Covid altho fully vaccinated are the older people ( aged above 60 plus ) is because these people ‘s antibodies are all very Low due to the lapse of time and also these people in this age group mostly taking medications eg for diabetes ,cholesterol,hypertension ,heart disease etc ! The medication tends to neutralise the vaccine efficacy ! So he says it’s important for these seniors to take the booster jab ! The previous jabs now becomes weaker with time n the medications taken !
🛑USE YOUR MASKS BECAUSE NEW COVID-DELTA IS DIFFERENT, DEADLY & UNDETECTABLE:
With the new COVID DELTA VIRUS there is:
NO COUGH
NO FEVER
Just a lot of:
JOINT-PAIN
HEADACHE
NECK PAIN
UPPER BACK PAIN
PNEUMONIA
GENERAL WEEKNESS
NO APPETITE
COVID-DELTA is of course, more Virulent and with a higher Death rate.
It takes less time to go to extremes, Sometimes without symptoms.
COVID-19 Warning Is Fake + Falsely Attributed To Dr. Leong Hoe Nam!
The truth is – this is yet another COVID-19 fake story, that was falsely attributed to Dr. Leong Hoe Nam to make it more believable.
Here are the facts…
Fact #1 : Rophi Clinic Confirmed That It’s Fake
Rophi Clinic, which is owned by Dr. Leong Hoe Nam, issued a notice on 25 September 2021, calling that viral warning “fake news”.
They also called for people to stop sharing the fake news, as it has “damaging information”.
It has come to our attention that a post quoting Dr Leong Hoe Nam has gone viral.
It was a supposed translation of a Chinese programme. There was no reference to any programme.
This is to state categorically that Dr Leong has never said what was shared. There is a lot of false information. This is a fake news information that is spreading disinformation that serves to hurt the covid 19 epidemic response of Singapore, and the reputation of Dr Leong Hoe Nam
*Please do your part by not spreading the damaging information further as shown attached.*
Fact #2 : Viral Message Is A Mash-Up
The viral message appears to be a mash-up of at least two different messages.
The first paragraph appears to be written by one person, while the rest by another person based on the opinions of Dr. Taiwo Obembe – a public health specialist at the College of Medicine of the University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
Fact #3 : Common Medications Do NOT Affect COVID-19 Vaccine Efficacy
Common medications taken for diabetes, cholesterol, hypertension and heart disease DO NOT affect the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines.
Generally, only drugs that suppress your immune system will reduce the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines, including NSAID painkillers.
They do not “neutralise” the vaccine, but rather – reduce your body’s immune response to each dose. Efficacy is reduced because your immune system does not react as vigorously to the vaccine.
That is why you are asked to continue taking your medications before and after each dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, but not NSAID painkillers.
Read more : Can You Take Painkillers Before / After COVID-19 Vaccination?
Fact #4 : COVID-19 Vaccine Efficacy Drops With Time + Age
It is true that COVID-19 vaccine efficacy is lower in older people, due to their body’s reduced immune response to new antigens.
It is also true that studies have shown that COVID-19 vaccine efficacy will wane with time, but even with reduced efficacy, they continue to offer strong protection against hospitalisation and death.
What this mean is the elderly and the immunocompromised may require a booster dose to enhance their immune system’s ability to fight against COVID-19.
Think of the booster dose as a refresher course for your COVID-19 self-defence class!
Read more : Why Delaying AstraZeneca Dose 2 INCREASES Efficacy?
Fact #5 : Delta Variant Do NOT Have Different Symptoms
Generally, patients infected the Delta variant exhibit the SAME SYMPTOMS as other COVID-19 variants :
- fever
- sore throat
- nasal congestion
- breathing difficulties
- headache
What’s different appears to be the prevalence of these symptoms.
According to the ZOE COVID Symptom Study, patients with the Delta variant appear to experience MORE fever, headache, nasal congestion and sore throat and LESS cough and loss of smell.
Fact #6 : Delta Variant Is More Transmissible + Deadly
The Delta variant is approximately 50% more transmissible than the Alpha variant, which itself is 50% more transmissible than the original SARS-CoV-2 strain.
It has also shown to be partially resistant to vaccines, and more deadly – leading to more hospitalisations and deaths.
Read more : Why Delta Variant Causes MORE Breakthrough Infections!
Fact #7 : Delta Variant Does Not Skip The Nasopharynx
The Delta variant has “greater affinity” for the mucosal lining of the lungs, which means it is more capable than other variants to infect the lungs.
However, it does not mean that the Delta variant “directly affects the lungs”, as the viral message claims.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus is immobile, and travels through droplets and aerosols that we breathe in. It is not a homing missile that goes in search of a particular target.
As the air we breathe passes through the nasopharynx before it reaches the lungs, that is where most of the virus ends up, and that is why we swab the nasopharynx to detect COVID-19.
Fact #8 : Nasopharyngeal Swab Still Picks Up Delta Variant
The current standard of obtaining a nasopharyngeal swab to detect the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus still works for the Delta variant.
That is how Delta variant patients are detected. In fact, genomic testing to confirm the Delta variant is performed on nasopharyngeal swab samples.
As explained in Fact #7, the coronavirus is carried by droplets and aerosols that has to pass through the nasopharynx before reaching the lungs.
So unless the patient breathes exclusively through the mouth, the nasopharynx is the best place to obtain samples of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Fact #9 : Current Tests Still Detect Delta Variant
Both the rt-PCR test and the Rapid Antigen Test continue to detect all COVID-19 variants, including the Delta variant.
While Rapid Antigen Test may deliver more false negative results, it is rare for the “gold standard” rt-PCR test to deliver a false negative result, and extremely rare to deliver two false negative results.
Fact #10 : COVID-19 Precautions Apply To All Variants
The COVID-19 precautions mentioned in the viral message are NOT unique to the Delta variant. They apply to all COVID-19 variants.
Please SHARE this fact check article with your family and friends, so they won’t get fooled by COVID-19 fake news!
Please Support My Work!
Name : Adrian Wong
Bank Transfer : CIMB 7064555917 (Swift Code : CIBBMYKL)
Credit Card / Paypal : https://paypal.me/techarp
Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.
He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.
Recommended Reading
- Is EU Cancelling COVID-19 Vaccination In October 2021?
- Verified : KKM + MySejahtera SMS Messages Are Legit!
- Did Medical Frontliners Convert Dying Patient To Islam?
- Did Xi Jinping Portraits Xi-eld Home From Demolition?
- Did America Hide Logo Of New Chinese Cranes With US Flag?
- Can Sunlight Sanitise Your Face Mask For Weeks Of Reuse?
Go Back To > Health | Fact Check | Tech ARP
Support Tech ARP!
Please support us by visiting our sponsors, participating in the Tech ARP Forums, or donating to our fund. Thank you!