Dawn Crawford vs Dirty County Politicians and  Officials

Although he hasn't had a physical in 16 months, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has been "in excellent health" and is physically ready to serve as president, his longtime physician wrote in a letter released by the campaign today.

The letter contained relatively few details but noted that Obama has a family history of cancer -- his mother died of ovarian cancer and a grandfather of prostate cancer. A prostate-specific antigen test detected no issues for Obama, however.

The Illinois senator has struggled to quit smoking, Dr. David L. Scheiner wrote in the overview, but is now "using Nicorette gum with success."

"His build was lean and muscular with no excess body fat," Scheiner said of the last physical, conducted Jan. 15, 2007. "His physical examination was completely normal."

The overview was contained in a one-page letter with no supporting documentation -- contrasting with Arizona Sen. John McCain's decision to let a selected group of reporters spend three hours with nearly 1,200 pages of health records last week.

Those records showed that McCain, the presumed Republican presidential nominee, is in good health, although he has a 15-year history of skin cancers, including a minor case in February, and has had bouts with precancerous polyps in his colon, kidney cysts and bladder stones.

Hillary Rodham Clinton, the New York senator who also is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, has not made her medical records public.

Dr. Mark Karp at USC's Keck School of Medicine, who reviewed Obama's doctor's letter, said Obama's reported scores for cholesterol levels and blood pressure were in the "optimal" range and agreed that, based on the overview, he "looks like he's in excellent health."

Obama's smoking could increase the risk for a wide range of illnesses, so it is good that he has taken measures to stop, Karp said. And Obama should continue screenings for prostate cancer, given the family history and the increased risk among African American men.

"That's an issue for all African American men," Karp said. "Once they're in their 40s they should be screened for prostate cancer on a yearly basis."

However, Scheiner's letter indicated that Obama had not been screened in more than a year.

Scheiner, on staff at the University of Chicago Hospitals and Rush University Medical Center, said he had been Obama's doctor for 21 years and that Obama had "been seen regularly for medical checkups and various minor problems such as upper respiratory infections, skin rashes and minor injuries."

At the time of last year's checkup, Obama was exercising regularly, followed a balanced diet and was "lean and muscular with no excess body fat."

Obama's blood pressure was 90 over 60 and his pulse rate was 60 beats per minute. His triglyceride level was 44, well under the "normal" threshold of 150; his cholesterol was 173, under the "normal" threshold of 200; his HDL level was 68; and his LDL was 96 -- all considered good, Scheiner said.

scott.martelle@latimes.com