Did Donald Trump really have “no idea” why he got an MRI? Dr. Vin Gupta, NBC medical analyst, weighs in

Dr. Vin Gupta, NBC medical analyst, says Donald Trump’s claim of having “no idea” about his MRI is highly unlikely

A medical expert has criticized President Donald Trump’s claim that he had “no idea” why he underwent an MRI scan during his recent visit to Walter Reed Military Medical Center.

Dr. Vin Gupta, a medical analyst for NBC News and former Chief Medical Officer at Amazon, told the MeidasTouch Podcast that it is highly unlikely for anyone to be unaware of which part of their body is being scanned.

“You know when you get an MRI what part of your body is going into the very narrow part of that MRI scanner because you hear it. You have to be in there for, you know, anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes,” Gupta said.

“The notion that he doesn’t know what got scanned is nonsensical because he’s hearing the magnet beat, and it’s for minutes. He definitely knows what got scanned.”

Trump, 79, recently underwent what his team described as a routine “annual” physical at Walter Reed. This marked his second annual exam in the same year.

The White House had initially released only a physician’s note stating that the president was in “excellent overall health.” Trump later revealed to journalists that he had undergone an MRI scan.

Dr. Gupta also questioned the rationale behind the MRI, noting that scans are rarely included in routine physicals due to the high likelihood of false positives.

“The fact that his team is saying, ‘Hey, he got this MRI. It’s part of an executive physical, part of his routine physical,’ is utter nonsense. That’s not a part of a routine physical exam,” he said.

The president’s second annual physical has intensified speculation about his health. Observers have pointed to slurred speech, unsteady balance, and erratic public appearances as potential indicators of underlying medical issues.

The White House has attributed his swollen ankles to chronic venous insufficiency, a common age-related condition.

Gupta further suggested that the MRI might be related to monitoring cognitive function or brain health.

“Is there something happening in the brain? Is the vasculature of the brain not getting enough blood to the brain? Who knows? Did he have stroke burden?” he said.

“If there’s early detection of something, that would make sense: that he is high-risk for something, or they already know he has a condition, maybe a neurologic issue, and they’re monitoring it. That would make complete sense.”