It is one thing for both Republican and Democratic lawmakers to call on the ailing Joe Biden to abandon his re-election efforts after his awkward and mumbling performance in the presidential debate.
It is quite another when a well-known neurosurgeon and deputy chief of neurosurgery at a major hospital – who is also CNN’s chief medical correspondent – calls on Biden to undergo extensive cognitive, neurological and movement disorder testing and to share the results with the public.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta summed it up in nine powerful words: “For me as a brain specialist, it was worrying”:
Dr. Sanjay Gupta calls on Biden to conduct cognitive tests: “For me as a brain specialist, this was worrying” https://t.co/NYUCCTlg2f pic.twitter.com/QItY3be4A4
— New York Post (@nypost) July 5, 2024
In an analysis written for CNN, Gupta continued.
It quickly became clear that I was not alone in my reaction. In the past week, I have received over a dozen calls, texts and emails from medical colleagues who, like me, specialize in the brain. What we noticed was not necessarily novel, but it was particularly pronounced, and it was right at the beginning of the debate.
From a neurological point of view, we were concerned about his incoherent speech, his sudden loss of concentration in mid-sentence, his halting speech and the lack of life in his face, which at times resulted in a blank, open-mouthed expression.
Gupta referred to “dementia” and “parkinsonism,” but stressed that he and the others were merely making observations and not a real diagnosis.
“To be clear, these are just observations,” Gupta said, “and in no way a diagnosis of anything deeper, and none of the doctors wanted to suggest that was the case. Still, Gupta said:
However, the doctors who contacted me agreed that the president should be encouraged to undergo detailed testing for cognitive and movement disorders and that the results should be made available to the public.
Gupta explains the level of testing recommended by him and his colleagues
This is sobering when you consider how many extraordinary people recommend it (emphasis mine).
Over the past five years, I have reported extensively on advances in the treatment and risk reduction of dementia, including Alzheimer’s, Lewy body dementia and vascular dementia. For the documentary “The Last Alzheimer’s Patient”
I even went through Extensive cognitive tests to demonstrate what it entailed and to determine if I had any problems with executive function, judgement or memory lapses, as well as blood tests to determine things like the level of abnormal proteins that might be present in my brain and my B12 levels. My sense of smell and my genetic risk factors were checked.
Such tests are not routinely necessary for most people, but all the brain doctors I spoke to have recommended such a test for Biden.
“The country is currently monitoring developments closely and this assessment is cause for concern,” said Sanjay Gupta, “and requires transparent testing.”
Biden’s last “official” health report
Gupta’s article makes it clear that Biden has been inadequately medically tested as president.
The last official report in February was a health summary that concluded the president was “fit for duty.” The White House said a team of 20 doctors, including a neurologist, were involved in his medical examination. An “extremely detailed” neurological examination found nothing suggestive of neurological disorders, the summary said.
No evidence of Parkinson’s disease was found to explain his stiff gait and diminished facial expression. Although Parkinson’s is the most common cause of Parkinsonism – a range of movement symptoms such as stiffness and tremors – there are other causes and the medical report did not indicate that these were investigated.
They found signs of neuropathy and arthritis in his feet, which can cause numbness, weakness and pain. There was no mention of any kind of cognitive tests.
Why? It can probably be plausibly denied.
Biden’s interview with Stephanopoulos: Is everything at stake?
To stop the bleeding — and “prove” he is cognitively capable of running for re-election — Biden sat down for an interview with former Bill Clinton communications director and current host of ABC’s “This Week,” George Stephanopoulos. The interview will air in full as a primetime special on Friday, July 5, at 8 p.m. ET.
Biden will try to prove in a detailed interview with George Stephanopoulos that he is not catatonic
What is at stake for Joe Biden today?
The conclusion
Dr. Sanjay Gumpta’s high reputation in the field of neurology (and he is also CNN’s chief medical correspondent) and his mighty assessment of Joe Biden’s current cognitive state, followed by his professional recommendation (which is shared by many of his colleagues), underscore the seriousness of the situation facing not only the Democratic Party but also the American people.
