Trump's doctor says he's in excellent health - but are US presidents' health checks a PR exercise?

Presidential health examinations have evolved from closely guarded secrets to public spectacles, though transparency remains limited. Historically, presidents concealed serious conditions like Woodrow Wilson's incapacitating stroke and FDR's wheelchair use, but since the 1960s Cold War era, administrations began publicly announcing physical exam results. The election of America's oldest-ever presidents—Trump at 70 in his first term and 78 in his second, and Biden serving from 78 to 82—has dramatically intensified public interest in presidential fitness.