Join 350,000+ subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of
The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
President diagnosed with 'chronic venous insufficiency'
The vein disorder has given Trump swollen ankles and visible bruising on his hands
President Donald Trump was examined by physicians after he reported noticing swelling in his legs several weeks ago. And he has now been diagnosed with "chronic venous insufficiency," a fairly common vein disorder that affects approximately 1 in 20 adults, the White House announced Thursday.
Who said what
Doctors found "no evidence of deep vein thrombosis or arterial disease," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a press briefing Thursday. The president's lab work was all "within normal limits."
Trump's diagnosis is a "pretty normal part of aging," particularly for someone in the "overweight to obese category, which is where the president has always been," Harvard Medical School Professor Dr. Jeremy Faust said to CNN. The White House's announcement follows a "spate of online speculation" over the president's swollen ankles and visible bruising on his hands, said Politico. Reading from a note attributed to Capt. Sean Barbabella, the president's personal physician, Leavitt said the bruising was the result of "frequent handshaking and the use of aspirin."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Trump "remains in excellent health," and his aspirin usage is part of a "standard cardiovascular prevention regimen," said Leavitt. Treatment for chronic venous insufficiency can include "weight loss, exercise, elevation, compression socks and, in some cases, medicines or minor procedures," said CBS. Surgical interventions can also be an option in "severe cases."
Sign up for The Week’s Politics Recap newsletter
Making sense of the week's political news, delivered every Wednesday
Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.
