The White House physician explained a red rash visible on President Donald Trump’s neck during a White House ceremony on Monday.
Dr. Sean Barbabella, the president’s personal physician, said the rash is a side effect to a “very common cream” used to treat skin conditions.
“The President is using this treatment for one week, and the redness is expected to last for a few weeks,” Dr. Barbabella said in a statement to NBC News.
Photos of Trump’s neck rash went viral on social media on Monday. The rash was visible on the right side of his neck during a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House on Monday, March 2.
Dr. Barbabella didn’t provide the name of the preventative cream.
A dermatologist on X.com said the ointment may be Triamcinolone cream, a corticosteroid used to treat skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, or allergies.
Triamcinolone cream is prescription only and is used to relieve redness, inflammation, itching and swelling caused by eczema and other skin conditions.
Triamcinolone ointment can cause side effects that include burning, itching, redness and dryness at the application site.
Trump, 79, is the oldest person to be elected president. He has had other skin conditions such as bruising on the back of his hand caused by taking high doses of Aspirin – a blood thinner that can cause bruises.
“They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart,” Trump told the Wall Street Journal. “I take the larger [dose], but I’ve done it for years, and what it does do is it causes bruising.”
Trump had his annual physical exam that included an MRI in April 2025.
