WASHINGTON : President Donald Trump requested that his first formal medicalexam include a cognitive test and “did exceedingly well,” receiving a scoreof 30 out of 30, the top White House doctor announced on Tuesday afternoon,Washington Post has reported.
Navy Rear Adm. Ronny L. Jackson, who has been the lead White House doctorsince 2013, said that he has interacted with the president several times aday for the past year and saw no need for a cognitive test. Jackson saidthat the president is “very sharp” in their conversations and does notrepeat himself. He added that he has seen no evidence of any cognitiveproblems.
At the president’s request, Jackson said that he reviewed a number ofcognitive tests and then administered the Montreal Cognitive Assessmentduring Trump’s first presidential physical exam on Friday afternoon atWalter Reed National Military Medical Center. The 10-minute exam isdesigned to detect mild cognitive impairment, generally in older patients.Trump answered all 30 questions correctly, Jackson said.
The test includes asking a patient to name several animals, draw a clockwith the hands at a certain time, copy a cube and recall a short list ofwords, among others. Jackson said he has “no indication whatsoever that hehas any cognitive issues.”
“I find no reason whatsoever to think the president has any issueswhatsoever with his thought process,” Jackson said.
Jackson said that based on Trump’s lab results and cardiac tests, he is”very healthy” and he expects the president to continue to be healthy forthe rest of his term and even in a second term.
Undergoing this physical is voluntary, and Trump can pick and choose whatthe public hears about his health. Jackson said that there is “absolutelynothing” that is being withheld from the public and that Trump’s release ofinformation is “hands down” the broadest in history.
Trump, 71, is 6-foot-3 and his weight is 239 pounds, which is consideredoverweight by the medical community and just short of obese, Jackson said.He said that he recommended that the president eat a healthier diet,exercise regularly and lose 10 to 15 pounds.
The president’s weight is 3 pounds higher than it was during the campaignin September 2016, according to a letter Trump released from his personalphysician in New York, Harold N. Bornstein.
That letter reported his cholesterol levels were controlled with medicationand were within the healthy range for a man his age. Jackson said thatTrump’s cholesterol level is now elevated, so he is increasing Trump’smedication.
Trump’s cholesterol of 223 is elevated and his low-density lipoprotein of143 is borderline high. Jackson said he hopes to bring down the LDL or “badcholesterol” score with diet, exercise and statin medication.