Obama’s Doctor, Praising His Health, Sees No Obstacles to Service

Senator Barack Obama, 46, was in “excellent health” at the time of his last examination more than a year ago and has no known medical problems that would affect his ability to serve as president, according to a letter by his physician released on Thursday.The letter is the first publicly released information about Mr. Obama’s medical history or current condition. The six-paragraph, one-page statement summarized the senator’s health for the last 21 years and was signed by Dr. David L. Scheiner, who said he has been Mr. Obama’s primary care physician since March 23, 1987. The undated letter was released less than a week after Senator John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive Republican nominee, released his medical records. On May 23, Mr. McCain, who has had extensive surgery for a malignant melanoma on his face, allowed a small number of reporters to sift through more than 1,100 pages of records from the Mayo Clinic for three hours. His doctors answered a limited number of questions in a teleconference in which they said his health was robust. A spokesman for Mr. Obama said his campaign would not make Dr. Scheiner available for a telephone interview. Aides have said Mr. Obama’s medical record is thin because he has not had any serious health problems. Dr. Scheiner wrote that he last examined Mr. Obama on Jan. 15, 2007. That was one day before Mr. Obama created a presidential exploratory committee. At the time, Dr. Scheiner said that Mr. Obama had no complaints, that his blood pressure was 90 over 60 and that his pulse was 60 beats a minute. Blood tests showed all his lipid measurements were within normal limits. Cholesterol was 173, HDL 68, LDL 96 and trigylcerides 44. The peskiest medical problem seems to be his multiple efforts to quit cigarette smoking, which he began at least two decades ago. Mr. Obama “has quit this practice on several occasions and is currently using Nicorette gum with success,” wrote Dr. Scheiner, a general internist who practices at the University of Chicago Hospitals and the Rush University Medical Center. He did not provide a standard measure of smoking-pack years, or the number of packs smoked a day by the number of years a person has smoked. Nor did the doctor define success. Thomas J. Glynn, director of cancer science and trends at the American Cancer Society in Washington, said in an interview that without more specific information about how much Mr. Obama smoked, it is impossible to cite his risks for developing lung or other tobacco-related cancers. Smoking can also lead to heart disease. Dr. Scheiner did not say when Mr. Obama started using Nicorette, how much he was using or for how long he has used it. Reporters have observed him chewing it very often. Nicorette is a replacement therapy aimed at easing the craving for nicotine and other withdrawal effects of cigarette smoking. It has smaller amounts of nicotine than cigarettes, but avoids the dangerous compounds in cigarette smoke that can lead to cancer, heart disease and other serious chronic ailments. The Food and Drug Administration approved nonprescription sales of the drug in 1984. A common practice is to use it for 12 weeks, chewing one piece every one to two hours and stopping when a peppery taste or tingling sensation develops in the mouth. An extra piece can be used for a strong craving. The frequency of chewing is reduced over time. Longer use is determined by a physician. Nicotine replacement products are available as patches, lozenges, inhalers and nasal sprays. The drug can cause hiccups and heartburn. Dr. Scheiner wrote that he had examined Mr. Obama “regularly for medical checkups and various minor problems such as upper respiratory infections, skin rashes and minor injuries.” He did not state whether he had prescribed any other medications for Mr. Obama, whether he had ever been an overnight patient in a hospital and when he had his last chest X-ray. The senator exercises regularly, often jogs three miles, and his build is lean and muscular and has no excess body fat, Dr. Scheiner said. “In short, his examination showed him to be in excellent health,” Dr. Scheiner wrote. “Senator Barack Obama is in overall good physical and mental health needed to maintain the resiliency required in the office of president.” He said Mr. Obama’s mother died of ovarian cancer and his grandfather of prostate cancer. Mr. Obama’s PSA, or prostatic specific antigen, which is used as a potential indicator of prostate cancer, was a normal 0.6 at his last checkup, Dr. Scheiner said.