The White House on Monday released a summary of the results of a magnetic resonance imaging scan President Donald Trump underwent in what had been described as a “routine” physical in October, with the president’s doctor saying he’s in “excellent” health.
The White House physician, Sean P. Barbabella, wrote in a memo that the MRI was of Trump’s cardiovascular system and abdomen, and said all of the imaging was “perfectly normal.” He said that the imaging was done “because men in his age group benefit from a thorough evaluation of cardiovascular and abdominal health.”
Trump is 79.
“The purpose of this imaging is preventive: to identify issues early, confirm overall health, and ensure he maintains long-term vitality and function,” the memo says.
Barbabella wrote that there was “no evidence of arterial narrowing impairing blood flow or abnormalities in the heart or major vessels. The heart chambers are normal in size, the vessel walls appear smooth and healthy, and there are no signs of inflammation, or clotting.”
As for the abdominal imaging, he wrote that “all major organs appear very health and well-perfused. Everything evaluated is functioning within normal limits with no acute or chronic concerns.”
The memo called the type of scan “standard for an executive physical at President Trump’s age.”
Such imaging is not standard during the typical annual physical, but some high-end “executive physicals” used by hospitals can include scans like full-body MRIs.
The scan was done on Oct. 10, during what White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt described as Trump’s “routine yearly checkup” — even though he’d undergone an annual physical exam in April.
A memo from Barbabella in October said the checkup was part of Trump’s “ongoing health maintenance plan.” The president underwent “advanced imaging, laboratory testing, and preventative health assessments,” the doctor wrote, not specifically mentioning the MRI.
Trump revealed he’d had the MRI scan over two weeks after the exam, while talking to reporters on Air Force One en route to Japan.
“We had an MRI, MRI and the machine, you know, the whole thing, and it was perfect,” he said Oct. 27. Asked for details, Trump said, “You can ask the doctors.”
“I think they gave you a very conclusive — nobody has ever given you reports like I gave you. And if I didn’t think it was going to be good, either I would let you know negatively, I wouldn’t run, I’d do something. But the doctors said some of the best reports for the age, some of the best reports they’ve ever seen,” he said at the time.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One during a Nov. 14 trip, he again did not say what had been scanned, and said the testing was “standard.”
“I have no idea what they analyze, but whatever they analyze, they analyze it well, and they said that I had as good a result as they’ve ever seen,” he said.
Speaking to reporters Sunday, the president again said he had “no idea” what was scanned. “What part of the body? It wasn’t the brain because I took a cognitive test and I aced it,” he said, before saying he would release the records.
Leavitt read the new memo from the doctor during her daily briefing Monday, and said it shows how transparent the administration is.
“I think that’s quite a bit of a detail. And in the effort of transparency, the president promised it last night and we have delivered today,” she said.
Akshay Syal, M.D. contributed.