It is false that the device created by a Brazilian is capable of detecting thrombosis in vaccinees – 05/24/2023 – Health

A tweet claiming that an alleged Brazilian scientist would have detected deep vein thrombosis in patients vaccinated against Covid-19 is false. The text says that the alleged thrombosis would be visible in images generated by a device created by the scientist himself, Felipe Reitz. However, the equipment in question would use thermographic images (which measure temperature in parts of the body) to identify pain, not to detect blood clots.

Felipe Reitz, according to the Lattes platform, studied biology and international relations, in addition to identifying himself as an inventor and “consultant of the New Age”. According to the Federal University of Santa Catarina, he entered the biological sciences course in 1991, but never completed graduation.

As verified by the Comprova Project, he is the creator of a piece of equipment that would measure pain levels called the Reitz Scan, which was funded by the government of Santa Catarina and was presented to the Ministry of Health in 2018. There is no official information that the machine is capable of identifying blood clots or any other health condition other than pain.

The video accompanying the uninformative Twitter post was originally posted by Greg Reese on Instagram and translated by the investigated profile. Reese is the editor of an American publication known for spreading disinformation content.

It uses footage taken from a YouTube video from August 23, 2022 in which Reitz is interviewed, in English, by an American doctor. In that interview, the Brazilian says he has images showing blood clots in asymptomatic vaccinated people and damage that would be caused by the “graphene oxide” present in vaccines. As has been denied several times, there is no graphene in immunizers against Covid-19.

In Reitz’s Facebook profile, it is possible to notice that he constantly publishes anti-vaccine content, mainly related to vaccination against Covid-19. He classifies mass immunization against the coronavirus as a “biological experiment”. For Felipe Reitz, vaccines were created to kill, which is not true.

The National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) and Fiocruz have already attested that, despite having been reported, cases of venous thrombosis in vaccinees are rare, with records between 0.2 and 3 cases for every 100,000 doses applied. The benefits of vaccines outweigh the risks related to the use of these products. Thus, immunizers are considered safe and continue to be recommended.

Reach

Comprova investigates suspicious content with greater reach on social networks. The subtitled video posted on the Telegram channel was viewed 33,000 times by May 16, 2022. On Twitter, the same content had 33,800 views.

How do we check

Based on the information that all vaccines against Covid-19 applied in Brazil were endorsed by Anvisa and that the diagnosis of thrombosis due to the vaccine is considered rare, Comprova sought to find out who Felipe Reitz was, the man featured in the piece. of misinformation like the “biologist” who said he diagnosed patients with large blood clots.

Based on a print taken from the video, with an image of Felipe Reitz, Comprova used the PimEyes app to search for similar photos and concluded that the man featured in the misinformation was a businessman who currently works as a consultant. We reached out to Reitz via Facebook and LinkedIn, but there was no response.

We contacted the Federal University of Santa Catarina to find out if he had graduated in Biology and the University of Southern Santa Catarina (Unisul) regarding his training in International Relations. We also researched the origin of the information and images that supposedly demonstrated thrombosis. We found an interview by Felipe Reitz with an American doctor on YouTube published in August 2022 in which both talk about the subject. To find out about the aforementioned diagnostic thermographic machine, we searched for records of the equipment at Inmetro and Anvisa (since it is a device for medical use).

Who is Felipe Reitz

Reitz says in the Lattes curriculum that he studied biology at the Federal University of Santa Catarina. The institution claims that he joined the course in 1991 but did not complete graduation. Used as a source in the investigated content, he introduces himself on LinkedIn as a business consultant. His current job listed on the professional network is self-employed and “Advisory Director for the Coming New Age.”

On his LinkedIn profile, Reitz claims to have accumulated experience in the areas of management and investor relations. In the Lattes curriculum he says he graduated in International Relations from the University of Southern Santa Catarina, in 2014. Comprova made contact with the institution to confirm the training, but did not get a response.

The title of his final paper appears in Lattes: BRICS – A comparison of the economic performance of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa in the period 2002-2010.

Felipe Reitz was the founder of Reitz Innovation, an extinct company specialized in “Pain Quantification”. He was also managing partner of the company Global Detecta Complementação Diagnóstica, which manufactures therapeutic equipment.

None of the companies operated in the field of vaccination. They developed machines for medical diagnosis. Reitz Innovation even presented its equipment to the medical department of the Avaí soccer team. The club website shows the record of this meeting. The meeting between Felipe Reitz and representatives of Avai took place in 2018.

Felipe Reitz’s companies ended their activities, according to the Federal Revenue, in August 2022. He is currently a partner in a web design and data processing company.

Anvisa informed that it did not find records of thermographic equipment referring to the name “Reitz Scan” or “Felipe Reitz”. A search in the Inmetro database for these same terms returned no result.

Thrombosis and vaccines

An edition of Comprova Explains clarified why adverse events after Covid-19 vaccination are rare and that the benefits outweigh the risks.

At the end of 2022, the Ministry of Health issued a note changing the recommendations for the use of vaccines against Covid-19 developed with viral vector technology, such as Oxford / AstraZeneca and Janssen. Both immunizations started to be indicated preferably for people over 40 years old.

According to the note, there were reports of cases of TTS (thrombosis syndrome with thrombocytopenia) in people who received these immunizers. However, the incidence is small, estimated between 0.2 and 3 cases per 100,000 applied doses.

The document also says that, although there is a very rare possibility of serious adverse events, the benefits of vaccination against Covid-19 outweigh the risks. “Different publications estimate between 300,000 and 800,000 lives saved by vaccination in just the first year of the vaccination campaign.”

What the person responsible for the publication says

Comprova tried to contact the Twitter profile that disseminated the content investigated here, but it does not allow sending messages. When analyzing the profile on Twitter, Rumble and Telegram, it is possible to see that the user translates and subtitles several uninformative videos originally published in English or Russian. He identifies himself as a translator.

What can we learn from this check

Disinformational content often uses shocking images of medical examinations or sick people to capture the public’s attention and as supposed “proof” of the claim made. It is important to know the origin of that image and whether it corresponds to the information that accompanies it. Another clue that the information is not true is that the author of the supposed study and inventor of the machine that identifies thrombosis is Brazilian and there is no record of his discovery in the Brazilian professional press. What exists are records of it and the equipment in reports related to the detection and measurement of pain.

why do we investigate

Comprova monitors suspicious content published on social networks and messaging apps about public policies and elections at the federal level and opens investigations for those publications that have achieved greater reach and engagement. You can also suggest checks via WhatsApp +55 11 97045-4984. Suggestions and questions related to questionable content can also be sent to Sheet via WhatsApp 11 99486-0293.

Other checks on the topic

Comprova has already denied numerous contents that linked vaccination against Covid-19 to the most diverse health problems, such as AIDS, cancer, genetic damage, deaths in children, organ damage and even “alien DNA”. The initiative also explained why adverse events after vaccination are rare and that the benefits outweigh the risks.

The investigation of this content was carried out by Correio Braziliense and A Gazeta, published on May 23 by Projeto Comprova, a coalition that brings together 41 vehicles to check viral content. It was verified by Folha, UOL, O Popular, Plural, SBT, SBT News, Grupo Sinos and AFP.