Questions Remain Over Donald Trump's Condition As He Releases Video From Hospital
President Donald Trump said from his hospital room on Saturday that he felt “much better” but the next few days will be “the real test” of his treatment for Covid-19, capping a day of contradictory messages from the White House about his condition.
In a four-minute video posted on Twitter, Trump, looking tired and wearing a jacket and open-necked shirt, said he “wasn’t feeling so well” when he first arrived at Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre on Friday.
“Over the next period of a few days, I guess that’s the real test, so we’ll be seeing what happens over those next couple of days,” Trump said, seated at a round table in front of an American flag.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 3, 2020
However, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows briefed reporters soon afterwards and said Trump went through a “very concerning” period on Friday and that the next 48 hours would be critical.
Further adding to the confusions, the president’s personal physician Dr Sean Conley had said the president was fever-free, was not on oxygen and was not having difficulty breathing.
Dr Conley refused to say whether Trump had ever been on oxygen despite repeated questioning, but said the president’s symptoms, including a cough and nasal congestion, “are now resolving and improving”.
A source familiar with Trump’s condition told the Associated Press the president was administered supplemental oxygen at the White House on Friday before going to hospital.
There was also confusion over when the president tested positive, as Dr Conley initially suggested Trump was 72 hours into the diagnosis.
Dr Conley later clarified he meant to say “day three” instead of 72 hours, and said the president had been first diagnosed with Covid-19 on Thursday evening
He also said Trump had received a first dose of a five-day course of Remdesivir, an intravenous antiviral drug sold by Gilead Sciences Inc that has been shown to...
