Claim: This message is currently running on many WhatsApp groups in Zimbabwe: “Urgent Warning. Be careful not to take the paracetamol that comes written P/500. It is new, very white and shiny paracetamol, doctors advise that it contains ‘Machupo’ virus, considered one of the most dangerous viruses in the world, with a high mortality rate.”
Source: social media
Is this true or false?
Verdict: False
According to Davison Kaiyo, Public Relations Officer of the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ), the message is false and has circulated on social media for a number of years.
He also said the note was not originated in Zimbabwe.
Using reverse-image search, we found that the note was also circulated on different social media platforms 2018 and 2019 with different pictures in different contexts, as evidence for people who were infected by the virus.
What is Machupo virus?
The Machupo virus causes Bolivian hemorrhagic fever. The virus is carried by a rodent species indigenous to Bolivia. According to the literature on the virus, the virus started in Bolivia since the early 1950s, but these outbreaks have largely been limited to specific areas in that country.
Conclusion
The claims of P-500 of paracetamol tablets containing ‘Machupo’ virus is false.
Source: Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ)
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