section_path: Personal life/Health
section_name: Health
paragraph_text: Health
  
  In July 2022, the director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, William Burns, stated they had no evidence to suggest Putin was unstable or in bad health. The statement was made because of increasing unconfirmed media speculation about Putin's health. Burns had previously been U.S. ambassador to Russia, and had personally observed Putin for over two decades, including a personal meeting in November 2021. A Kremlin spokesperson also dismissed rumours of Putin's bad health.
  
  The Russian political magazine Sobesednik (Russian: Собеседник) alleged in 2018 that Putin had a sensory room installed in his private residence in the Novgorod Oblast. The White House, as well as Western generals, politicians, and political analysts, have questioned Putin's mental health after two years of isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  
  In April 2022, tabloid newspaper The Sun reported that based on video footage Putin may have Parkinson's disease. This speculation, which has not been supported by medical professionals, has spread in part due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which many saw as an irrational act. The Kremlin rejected the possibility of Parkinson's along with outside medical professionals, who stress that it is impossible to diagnose the condition based on video clips alone.