Donald Trump's Chronic Venous Insufficiency In Spotlight: Why Medical Experts Are Concerned After SOTU Address

President Donald Trump's right hand became an unexpected talking point during his State of the Union address on 24 February, after viewers noticed what appeared to be a large purple bruise covered with makeup.

The 79-year-old president delivered a record-breaking one-hour and 47-minute speech, and the discolouration drew fresh public scrutiny of his health, even as the White House has offered multiple explanations for similar marks over the past year.

What is new is not the bruising itself, which observers and doctors have pointed to on and off since last summer, but how hard it has become to ignore when it shows up under the unforgiving logic of cameras. It remains to be seen whether this is merely the messy by-product of a punishing public schedule and medication, or a visible hint of something more serious that has not been disclosed.

The White House has variously attributed the bruising to everyday knocks and the wear and tear of constant public contact. Trump has also acknowledged taking a higher-than-recommended daily dose of aspirin to keep his blood 'thin' for cardiovascular health, which can make bruising more likely.

Donald Trump's Bruise And The White House Story

OK! Magazine reported that Trump used makeup to cover the bruise on the back of his right hand during the address, and that 'eagle-eyed observers' spotted it as he spoke. It was not just the mark itself that set tongues wagging, but the choreography around it, with Trump appearing to place his hand carefully and grip the podium in a way that kept the discolouration out of direct camera view.

The White House line has been consistent in its broad message, even when the details vary. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has previously described the marks as 'minor soft tissue irritation' from shaking hands with 'thousands of people daily.' In January, Trump brushed off a bruise on his left hand by saying he had 'clipped it' on a table during a meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Those explanations may well be true, and yet their very variety has helped keep the rumour mill alive. If a bruise is always accidental, it is curious how often it becomes a story, and how quickly the story shifts from optics to diagnosis. That jump is precisely where public discussion becomes slippery, because a photograph invites certainty while the underlying medical reality can be banal, complicated, or both.

There is also the uncomfortable fact that the White House itself has contributed to the narrative by acknowledging behaviour that, at the very least, appears medically consequential. OK! Magazine reports that Trump has admitted he takes a higher-than-recommended daily dosage of aspirin to maintain 'thin blood' for cardiovascular health, and that this leads him to bruise more easily. That admission does not prove anything sinister, but it does mean the bruising sits inside an official explanation rather than a purely online theory.

Donald Trump's Chronic Venous Insufficiency And The Expert Doubts

The bruising is also being read through the lens of a diagnosis already on the record. In July 2025, the White House confirmed Trump was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, which OK! Magazine describes as a benign vein condition that can lead to swelling and discolouration.

Even with that confirmation, scepticism persists, partly because the bruising has appeared intermittently, sometimes on the right hand and sometimes on the left, since the previous summer. OK! Magazine says some doctors have theorised the marks could signal underlying issues, though the piece does not cite a definitive cause, and the speculation remains just that. The White House, for its part, has insisted recent medical evaluations at Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre show Trump remains in 'exceptional health.'

Outside voices have been less willing to take the matter at face value. Edith Olmsted of The New Republic wrote that Trump has 'gotten good at hiding it from the public' through makeup and hand placement, adding that 'cameras don't lie.' That line is sharp, and it lands because it flatters the viewer into thinking they are seeing through the performance, but it still does not answer the clinical question of what the bruise means.

A more direct note of alarm came from cardiologist Dr Jonathan Reiner, who treated the late former Vice President Dick Cheney, and who said in December 2025 that he was 'seriously concerned' about Trump's health and that the president looked 'unwell' during a speech. Dr Drew Pinsky has also suggested that Trump's aspirin use and certain 'shuffling' movements could point to a prior stroke, although OK! Magazine notes this has not been confirmed by official medical records.