Walter Reed doctors praise Trump's recovery, reveal he was treated with steroid on Saturday after 'second drop in oxygen' and say he could be discharged today
The president's doctors said Sunday that he could be discharged from Walter Reed Medical Center as early as Monday as Trump's top physician detailed he was given a steroid and put on oxygen as a treatment for COVID-19.
'Our plan for today is to have him to eat and drink, be up out of bed as much as possible, to be mobile,' Dr. Brian Garibaldi, one of the doctor's on Trump's team, said. 'And if he continues to look and feel as well as he does today, our hope is that we can plan for a discharge as early as tomorrow to the White House where he can continue his treatment course.'
He also detailed that Trump would continue taking doses of Remdesivir, a broad-spectrum antiviral medication, and dexamethasone, a steroid, whether he remains at Walter Reed or is transferred to the White House.
Pressed about the conflicting information he and the White House released the previous day, the president's top doctor, Navy Commander Sean Conley, acknowledged that he had tried to present a rosy description of of the president's condition.
'I was trying to reflect the upbeat attitude of the team, that the president, that his course of illness has had. Didn't want to give any information that might steer the course of illness in another direction,' Conley said. 'And in doing so, came off like we're trying to hide something, which wasn't necessarily true. The fact of the matter is that he's doing really well.'
Conley also deflected blame during the briefing, claiming there was some confusion over Trump's condition because Chief of Staff Mark Meadow's comments were misrepresented. 'The Chief and I work side-by-side,' Conley said of Meadows. 'nd I think his statement was misconstrued.'
'What he meant was that 24 hours ago, when he and I were checking on the president, that there was that momentary episode of a high fever. And that temporary drop in the saturation, which prompted us to act expediently to move him up here,' he said of the president's swift movement from the White House to Walter Reed on Friday.
'Fortunately that was a very transient, limited episode,' he continued in a briefing with some press outside the hospital center. 'A couple hours later he was back up, mild again. I'm not going to speculate what that limited episode was about so early in the course. But he's doing well.'
Mike Pence and second lady Karen Pence both tested negative for coronavirus on Sunday, paving the way for the vice president to take power should the president become incapacitated.
Trump tweeted Sunday afternoon, writing: 'I really appreciate all of the fans and supporters outside of the hospital. The fact is, they really love our Country and are seeing how we are MAKING IT GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE!'
Donald Trump's doctors revealed Sunday that they treated the president with a steroid and put him on oxygen Saturday as they were concerned over the rapid progression of the virus
'If he continues to look and feel as well as he does today, our hope is that we can plan for a discharge as early as tomorrow to the White House where he can continue his treatment course,' Garibaldi said
Physician to the President Dr. Sean Conley, a Navy Commander, was forced to explain during the briefing Sunday that there was some confusion over Trump's condition because Chief of Staff Mark Meadow's comments were 'misconstrued'
Meadows v. Conley: Meadows rubbed his forehead Sunday (left) as Conley spoke to reporters outside Walter Reed. 'The president's vitals over the last 24 hours were very concerning and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care. We're still not on a clear path to a full recovery,' Meadows told reporters anonymously and it was later revealed he was the source of the remarks
The masked doctors gave their second update in two days on Trump's condition as questions emerged over conflicting statements on how the disease and his treatment was progressing
Conley, a Navy Commander and physician to the president, revealed during the briefing that Trump was treated with the steroid dexamethasone after a drop in oxygen levels on Saturday.
'Over the course of his illness, the president has experienced two episodes of transient drops in his oxygen saturation. We debated the reasons for this and whether we'd even intervene. As a determination of the team, based predominantly on the timeline for the diagnosis, that we initiate dexamethasone,' Conley said.
The physician then detailed the timeline of Trump's treatment and the decision Friday to move him to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center just hours after the president announced that he and first lady Melania Trump tested positive for coronavirus.
'Thursday night into Friday morning when I left the bedside, the president was doing well with only mild symptoms and his oxygen was in the high 90's. Late Friday morning when I returned to the bedside, president had a high fever and his oxygen level was transiently dipping below 94 per cent,' Conley said.
'Given these two developments, I was concerned for possible rapid progression of the illness,' he continued. 'I recommended the president try some supplemental oxygen.'
Conley said Trump was 'very adamant that he didn't need it. Was not short of breath. He was tired, had the fever, and that was about it.'
He said after a minute of oxygen, Trump's levels were back up above 95 per cent – but said that he kept the president's on the measure for about an hour.
Conley explained that the president's oxygen level did not dip into the 80's and reiterated that he was up and about shortly after the 'transient' episode.
Meadows received backlash Saturday after it appeared his comments on Trump's condition contradicted others' assessments, including the president's.
'The president's vitals over the last 24 hours were very concerning and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care. We're still not on a clear path to a full recovery,' Meadows told reporters anonymously and it was later revealed he was the source of the remarks.
Meadows' comments came just after a White House team of doctors said that Trump's condition was improving and that he was already talking about returning to the White House.
One doctor said Trump told them, 'I feel like I could walk out of here today.'
In an update Saturday, Conlety wrote: 'This evening he completed his second dose of Remdesivir without complication. He remains fever-free and off supplemental oxygen with a saturation level between 96% and 98% all day.'
'He spent most of the afternoon conducting business, and has been up and moving about the medical suite without difficulty. While not yet out of the woods, the team remains cautiously optimistic,' the White House Physician continued.
'The plan for tomorrow is to continue observation in between doses of remdesivir, closely monitoring his clinical status while fully supporting his conduct of Presidential duties.'
Several hours later, Deputy White House Press Secretary Judd Deere posted a picture showing Trump working into the night from the hospital.
The new comments from the president's medical team on Sunday comes as Trump's campaign advisers Stephen Miller and Steve Cortes claimed Sunday the president is eager to get back to campaigning even after Conley said Saturday he is not yet 'out of the woods.'
Miller, the campaign's senior adviser, said he spoke to Trump recently and said the president told him 'he's going to defeat this virus… and our campaign is going to defeat this virus.'
'Once he gets out of the hospital, he's ready to get back to the campaign trail,' Miller told NBC's Chuck Todd during an interview on 'Meet the Press' Sunday morning. 'He sounded pretty energetic.'
'But he said something else that I thought that was important too,' Miller said, 'and that was to be careful, and that was to remind folks to wash their hands, use hand sanitizer, make sure that if you can't socially distance, distance to wear a mask. And I thought that was a pretty important message to send and a reminder to the rest of the country.'
Cortes, another senior campaign adviser, reiterated the president's fitness during an interview with Chris Wallace on 'Fox News Sunday.'
'He's doing well,' Cortes attested.
'We spoke to the president yesterday, we meaning senior campaign staff,' Cortes said. 'He was as upbeat and assertive as he's ever been.'
He added: 'This president is going to recover, we are highly confident of that.'
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