(The Hill) – President Trump disputed the idea that there was anything wrong with his health and clarified that he got a CT scan instead of an MRI scan when he visited Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for a “secondary” physical.
Trump, who is 79, told The Wall Street Journal in an interview published Thursday it was “too bad” he had cardiovascular and abdominal imaging done, saying “it gave them a little ammunition.”
“I would have been a lot better off if they didn’t, because the fact that I took it said, ‘Oh gee, is something wrong?’” Trump said. “Well, nothing’s wrong.”
The president said that the imaging he received in October “wasn’t an MRI.”
“It was less than that,” he added. “It was a scan.”
Trump told reporters in late October that he had done a cognitive test and had an MRI scan taken while visiting Walter Reed but didn’t explain why. The president called his MRI “perfect.”
Trump physician Sean Barbabella later said in a memo released last month amid growing scrutiny around the president’s health that the scans had been done “because men in his age group benefit from a thorough evaluation of cardiovascular and abdominal health” and called the assessment Trump underwent “standard for an executive physical at President Trump’s age.”
Barbabella said the cardiovascular and abdominal imagining were “perfectly normal” and said the president was in “excellent overall health.”
In a statement responding to the Journal interview, Barbabella said that staff had “recommended” Trump have a second physical examination done in October “to ensure continued optimal health.”
“As part of that examination, we asked the President if he would undergo advanced imaging – either an MRI or CT Scan – to definitively rule out any cardiovascular issues,” Trump’s doctor added. “The President agreed, and our team of consultants performed a CT Scan. As we revealed in the post-examination report, the advanced imaging was perfectly normal and revealed absolutely no abnormalities.”
Barbabella maintained that Trump’s test work showed “excellent metabolic health” and suggested it “revealed his cardiovascular health puts him 14 years younger than his age.”
Trump has received increasing scrutiny over his health after revealing in the fall that he had imaging done. He is the oldest president to serve in the White House but has repeatedly said his health is fine.
The Journal noted that doctors have recommended Trump take a smaller dose of aspirin than he currently takes for cardiac prevention amid concerns of easier bruising and as the president deals with superficial chronic venous insufficiency.
Questions around age also plagued former President Biden, particularly after his disastrous debate against Trump during the 2024 cycle — prompting calls for Biden to drop out and forgo a second White House bid.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that Trump “has nothing to hide” and lauded him as “the most transparent and open president in history,” contrasting him with Biden “who hid from the press and lied about his clear physical and mental decline.”
“The President’s physicians and the White House have always maintained the President received advanced imaging,” Leavitt said.