An impostor of the University of Sto. Tomas (UST) Hospital is circulating an ad on Facebook (FB) for a product that supposedly cures a variety of orthopedic conditions. This is a scam.
Uploaded on June 14, the fake post carried photos of UST officials receiving an award, a stock photo of a patient inside an emergency room and the product Perfectx osteoarthritis cream.
Its caption further claimed that the cream has been “officially acknowledged” by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and “recommended” by the Department of Health (DOH).
Readers are directed to click on the website JAPANSALE1.ONLINE where they are asked to provide their personal information to purchase the product. The website likewise claims that the product “effectively eliminates 99% of orthopedic problems” like osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis, among others, in just two weeks.
In a May 1 advisory posted on their official FB page, the UST Hospital warned netizens about pages that pretend to be affiliated with them.
“USTH does not sell or endorse any products on its official Facebook page. The institution only promotes the hospital services and provides health teaching to the public,” part of the advisory read.
Fake credentials
Perfectx osteoarthritis cream is not in the FDA’s list of products with Certificate of Product Registration.
The DOH has not endorsed Perfectx on its official website, FB and YouTube accounts, and neither has orthopedic surgeon Richard Berger (his FB page and website), contrary to the scammer’s claims.
To add to its duplicity, the impostor FB page used a four-year-old photo of UST Hospital officials receiving an award.
On the JAPANSALE1.ONLINE website, a photo of American orthopedic surgeon Jesse Delee was also featured. The site falsely claimed it shows “Dr. John Brown” of the “Philippine General Hospital.”
VERA Files Fact Check has debunked other adverts for the same cream last May. (Read Doctors Willie, Liza Ong NOT promoting unlicensed arthritis cream)
On July 4, DOH Sec. Teodoro Herbosa said he would instruct the FDA to work with the National Bureau of Investigation to get to the bottom of the prevalence of fake ads.
The Philippine Statistics Authority’s data revealed that diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue were ranked 22nd among the causes of death of Filipinos in 2022.
The scam posted by the page UST Hospital (created on April 30) has 1,200 reactions, 469 comments and 118 shares as of writing.
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(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)
