Donald Trump health update sparks more doubt and speculation after a medical expert calls out the White House's 'filtered narrative.'
A Texas vascular surgeon says the official reports about President Donald Trump's excellent health are but spins in the White House's 'filtered narrative.' '
That report is almost too good to be true for somebody of his age,' Dr. William Shutze told The Wall Street Journal. His statement adds to mounting speculation over Trump's true condition, with critics noting he hasn't appeared in live TV in nearly a week.
Trump in 'Perfect Health' After Tuesday's Evaluation
The POTUS took a battery of tests during his annual medical checkup on Tuesday, at Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre. His vitals, evaluation and lab results appeared normal. He also got a perfect score in the cognitive test, per White House's report.
'Preventive counselling was provided, including guidance on diet, recommendation to take a low-dose aspirin, increased physical activity, and continued weight loss,' according to a note in the report.
'Just finished my 6 month physical at Walter Reed Military Medical Center. Everything checked out PERFECTLY,' Trump later wrote in a Truth Social post.
Trump's physician, Navy Capt. Sean Barbabella, also anticipated the annual evaluation's results last Friday, asserting that the president 'remains in excellent health, demonstrating strong cardiac, pulmonary, neurological and overall physical function.'
Barbarella cited results from a CT angiography, echocardiogram, and an AI-enhanced electrocardiogram, which estimated Trump's cardiac age at 65. He turns 80 this month.
Doctor Challenges Donald Trump Health Update
Shutze argued key metrics were missing in the White House report. 'If I was creating a report to send to another physician, I would have mentioned a little bit more about the carotid ultrasound,' he stated. 'What amount of plaque there is going to be—because almost all of us are going to have some buildup there.'
The results simply noted there were 'no arterial obstruction or structural abnormalities' in the heart or major blood vessels, per the outlet. That still calls for a detailed assessment of Trump's cardiac health, including calcium and CAD-RADS scores describing the condition of the arteries.
Barbabella has also noted Trump's bruised hand and swollen leg in a previous report, the latter 'improved since last year.' The bruising was described as 'common,' 'benign,' and 'consistent with minor soft tissue irritation linked to frequent handshaking while taking aspirin for cardiovascular protection.'
The memorandum failed to provide detailed results from diagnostic tests evaluating his heart health, which physicians highlighted as insufficient details.
The White House Explains Trump's Medical Report
The White House stated that the absence of specific results confirmed there were no clinically meaningful abnormalities. Friday's memo was also intended to only provide overall findings. White House communications director Steven Cheung also dismissed critics who accuse the administration of concealing the president's true condition.
'President Trump has publicly released more detailed information about his health than any other president in history—showing he is in excellent health,' Cheung said, calling out the physicians who speculate on patients outside their care.
However, incomplete medical summaries are not normal practice for presidential physical examinations, according to physicians interviewed by the outlet. Presidents are not required by law or policy to disclose any health data.
