Stealth Medicine in the White House: the Secret Heart Disease of President Franklin D. Roosevelt

Host: John Russell, MD In the 1940's, popular American President Franklin D. Roosevelt developed a serious illness that went undetected by the media and general public. That illness was severe hypertensive heart disease, and unbeknownst to everyone outside the White House, the medical staff may have been hiding its progression to protect the President's image during his last campaign. Did the secrecy cost him his life prematurely, or were treatments too limited at the time to make a fundamental impact? Furthermore, had it been known by everyone, would the President have been reelected? Joining Dr. John Russell to discuss the fascinating history of a possible White House medical conspiracy of old is Dr. W. Bruce Fye, author of Caring for the Heart: Mayo Clinic and the Rise of Specialization,