Why is the world discussing Russian President Vladimir Putin's health?

According to a report, Putin is suffering 'severe pain in his head, blurred vision, and numbness of the tongue'

Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin's health has been a hot topic of discussion. Several reports have emerged in the last few months that signal Putin's ailing health.

According to a new report by the British tabloid Metro, Putin is suffering "severe pain in his head, blurred vision, and numbness of the tongue." It has caused panic among doctors around him, the report adds.

The report further said that Putin also reported "partial loss of sensation in his right arm and leg", requiring urgent medical attention. A council of doctors performed first aid and ordered Putin to take medication and rest for several days. However, he declined to do so.

Earlier, in February this year, a video of Putin's unusual feet movement also raised concern about his health. During his meeting with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, the Russian President could not control his twitching feet, as was seen in several videos shared on social media.

In November last year, reports emerged about Putin's ill health after a video showed unusual marks on his hands. A retired British army officer and member of the House of Lords, Richard Danatt, told Sky News, "Keen observers now are noticing that his hands are looking pretty black on top, which is a sign of injections going in when other parts of the body can't take injections."

Before that, a US intelligence report had also suggested that Putin may be suffering from an "advanced form of cancer".

A large number of claims about his ill health come from a Telegram channel, "General SVR". A few days after the video, the channel said that Putin "fell down the stairs and soiled himself" at his residence earlier.

The channel said that the ailing Russian leader allegedly fell five steps before landing on his coccyx, or tailbone.

Previously, Spanish news outlet Marca had also reported that Putin is battling cancer and Parkinson's disease. This was confirmed by a security service insider in leaked Kremlin emails, "I can confirm he has been diagnosed with early-stage Parkinson's disease, but it's already progressing. This fact will be denied in every possible way and hidden," the source had said in the emails, as per Marca.

However, Putin and the Kremlin have time and again denied the claims and said that the Russian President is in perfect health.