Dr. Amen

[slappy]

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23594447

The article is quite something. The references section, even better.

1. Amen DG, Stubblefield M, Carmicheal B. Thisted R. Brain SPECT findings and aggressiveness. Ann Clin Psychiatry. 1996;8(3):129-37.
2. Tucker N. Daniel Amen is the most popular psychiatrist in America. To most researchers and scientists, that's a very bad thing. Washington Post. Available at http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2012-08-09/lifestyle/35493561_I_psychiat-ric-practices-psychiatrist-clinics. Published August 9. 2012.
3. Jaeger T. Mehr S: SPECT in Child Psychiatry. All day course at the American Associations Annual Meeting, May 1993.
4. Insel TR. Disruptive insights in psychiatry: transforming a clinical discipline. / Clin Invest. 2009;l 19(4):700-705.
5. Amen, DG. Jourdain, M, Taylor, DV, Pigott, HE. Willeumier, K. Multi-site, 6-month outcome study of complex psychiatric patients evaluated with addition of brain SPECT imaging. Adv Mind Body Med. In press.
6. Brain SPECT Abstracts. Amen Clinics. Available at http://www.amenclinics.com/ the-science/brain-spect-abstracts. Accessed January 4, 2013.
7. Pierluigi T. Allen JM, et al. Scientific evidence underlying the ACC/AHA clinical practice guidelines. JAMA. 2009;301(8):831-41.
8. Lee DH, Vielemeyer O. Analysis of overall level of evidence behind Infectious Diseases Society of America practice guidelines. Arch Intern Med. 20U;171(l):18- 22.
9. Amen, D, Highum, D, Licata, R, Annibali. J, Somner, L, Pigott, HE, Taylor, DV, Trujillo, M, Newberg, A , Henderson, T, Willeumier, K. Specific ways brain SPECT imaging enhances clinical psychiatric practice. / Psychoactive Drugs. 2012;44{2):96-106.
10. Radar Medical Procedure Radiation Dose Calculator an Consent Langtiage Generator. Stanford Dosimetry, LLC. Available at http://www.doseinfo-radar. com/RADARDoseRiskCalc.html. Accessed January 4. 2013.
11. Billioti de Gage S, Bégaud B, Bazin F, Verdoux H, Dartigues JR Pérès K, Kurth T, Pariente A. Benzodiazepine use and risk of dementia: prospective population based study BMJ. 2012;345:e6231.
12. Burton T. Studies cite head injuries as factor in some social ills. Wall Street Journal. January 29, 2008. Available at http://online.wsj.com/article/ SB 120156672297223803.html.
13. Willeumier K, Taylor D. Amen D. Effects of elevated body mass in professional American football players on rCBF and cognitive function. Transi Psychiatry. 2012;2:eK.
14. Amen DG, Wu JC, Taylor D, Willeumier K. Reversing brain damage in former NEL players: implications for TBI and substance abuse rehabilitation. / Psychoactive Drugs. 2011;43(l). Online publication date: 08 April 2011
15. Amen DG, Newberg A, Thatcher R, Jin Y, Wu J. Keator D. Willeumier K. Impact of playing professional American football on long term brain function. / NeuropsychiatryClinNeurosci.201l;23{l):9S-l06.

 

[slappy]

Anyone have full access to this highly-touted "6-month outcome study" of theirs? http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23709407

The abstract is a joke.

EDIT: According to http://www.amenclinics.com/outcome-study/ the addition of brain SPECT imaging modified the diagnostic and treatment process for 78.9% of patients studied (n=500). So that's exactly 394.5 patients.

 

[Ceke2002]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23594447

The article is quite something. The references section, even better.

1. Amen DG, Stubblefield M, Carmicheal B. Thisted R. Brain SPECT findings and aggressiveness. Ann Clin Psychiatry. 1996;8(3):129-37.
2. Tucker N. Daniel Amen is the most popular psychiatrist in America. To most researchers and scientists, that's a very bad thing. Washington Post. Available at http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2012-08-09/lifestyle/35493561_I_psychiat-ric-practices-psychiatrist-clinics. Published August 9. 2012.
3. Jaeger T. Mehr S: SPECT in Child Psychiatry. All day course at the American Associations Annual Meeting, May 1993.
4. Insel TR. Disruptive insights in psychiatry: transforming a clinical discipline. / Clin Invest. 2009;l 19(4):700-705.
5. Amen, DG. Jourdain, M, Taylor, DV, Pigott, HE. Willeumier, K. Multi-site, 6-month outcome study of complex psychiatric patients evaluated with addition of brain SPECT imaging. Adv Mind Body Med. In press.
6. Brain SPECT Abstracts. Amen Clinics. Available at http://www.amenclinics.com/ the-science/brain-spect-abstracts. Accessed January 4, 2013.
7. Pierluigi T. Allen JM, et al. Scientific evidence underlying the ACC/AHA clinical practice guidelines. JAMA. 2009;301(8):831-41.
8. Lee DH, Vielemeyer O. Analysis of overall level of evidence behind Infectious Diseases Society of America practice guidelines. Arch Intern Med. 20U;171(l):18- 22.
9. Amen, D, Highum, D, Licata, R, Annibali. J, Somner, L, Pigott, HE, Taylor, DV, Trujillo, M, Newberg, A , Henderson, T, Willeumier, K. Specific ways brain SPECT imaging enhances clinical psychiatric practice. / Psychoactive Drugs. 2012;44{2):96-106.
10. Radar Medical Procedure Radiation Dose Calculator an Consent Langtiage Generator. Stanford Dosimetry, LLC. Available at http://www.doseinfo-radar. com/RADARDoseRiskCalc.html. Accessed January 4. 2013.
11. Billioti de Gage S, Bégaud B, Bazin F, Verdoux H, Dartigues JR Pérès K, Kurth T, Pariente A. Benzodiazepine use and risk of dementia: prospective population based study BMJ. 2012;345:e6231.
12. Burton T. Studies cite head injuries as factor in some social ills. Wall Street Journal. January 29, 2008. Available at http://online.wsj.com/article/ SB 120156672297223803.html.
13. Willeumier K, Taylor D. Amen D. Effects of elevated body mass in professional American football players on rCBF and cognitive function. Transi Psychiatry. 2012;2:eK.
14. Amen DG, Wu JC, Taylor D, Willeumier K. Reversing brain damage in former NEL players: implications for TBI and substance abuse rehabilitation. / Psychoactive Drugs. 2011;43(l). Online publication date: 08 April 2011
15. Amen DG, Newberg A, Thatcher R, Jin Y, Wu J. Keator D. Willeumier K. Impact of playing professional American football on long term brain function. / NeuropsychiatryClinNeurosci.201l;23{l):9S-l06.

So a totally above board and completely impartial study then

 

[Jorje286]

It's quite surprising how scams can still flourish in the medical field. I also personally know a psychologist who runs all kind of non-validated EEG testing and "treatment" modalities.

 

[Shikima]

Immunizations cause autism? Anyone? Bueller?

 

[erg923]

Immunizations cause autism? Anyone? Bueller?

Of course they do, dummy! 🙂

 

[Shikima]

Of course they do, dummy! 🙂

Silly, silly me.

 

[PikminOC]

To return this old thread back to its original topic, I now have a patient from the Amen Clinic. I feel I can deal with the patient and family despite the obvious difficulties there. What I'm concerned about is that I plan to speak to the patient's doctor at the clinic for the purpose of coordination of care. But how can I speak to an absolute quack professionally?

I'm planning to play dumb to come across as inquisitive but open-minded. That's sort of my default position for navigating the world so the acting shouldn't be too hard.

I requested the full report from them as a patient had gone there first. The cover page says that there is no doctor patient relationship between the evaluator and the patient.
Now they recommend the patient take herbal meds. Herbals that they sell of course and send monthly. Costly as well.

 

[PikminOC]

Of course. I'm guessing it goes like this. "These drugs cause this brain damage that we can see on your brain scan so you need to take these drugs to fix it. That will be X 1000's of dollars please." I did have a couple of patients that spent 5k to get their kids on methylphenidate after a definitive brain scan for ADHD from him. Most of my patients can get the same dx and tx from the family doc for a lot less money.

They don't want to see that there is anything else wrong with their kid. It must be adhd, can't possibly be anything else....

 

[PikminOC]

Presenting Dr. Daniel Amen, psychiatrist and founder of the Amen Clinics:

The last time I saw him on tv was on PBS with his new wife, a nurse who works there.
All they did was talk about his relatives with ADHD and how they are doing very well now that he evaluated and treated them.

The best part is all of his recs have to be done at his clinic.
You don't get the SPECT anywhere else.
You don't buy the vitamins anywhere else.

 

[VelvetElvis]

The neuro-psychiatrist I've been seeing for a number of years attempted to replicate Amen's work with SPECT scans in his own practice. It didn't work out so well for him.

The best part is all of his recs have to be done at his clinic.
You don't get the SPECT anywhere else.
You don't buy the vitamins anywhere else.

I have one of Amen's early books, in the back of which is a listing of other psychiatrists working with SPECT scans. If he's now saying you can only get the scans done at his clinics, I'm betting it's because everyone else who tried doing them realized they are a load.

(I'm not a medical professional or student. I'm just a well-informed patient who's been following Amen's carnival act for nearly 20 years.)

 

[PikminOC]

The neuro-psychiatrist I've been seeing for a number of years attempted to replicate Amen's work with SPECT scans in his own practice. It didn't work out so well for him.



I have one of Amen's early books, in the back of which is a listing of other psychiatrists working with SPECT scans. If he's now saying you can only get the scans done at his clinics, I'm betting it's because everyone else who tried doing them realized they are a load.

(I'm not a medical professional or student. I'm just a well-informed patient who's been following Amen's carnival act for nearly 20 years.)

Probably didn't work out for the neuropsych bc there's no evidence or correlation for this.
Look up Amen clinic all over the net. Like yelp too.

 

[Ceke2002]

Slightly OT, but just in regards to the name 'Dr Amen' I was wondering -- in the US are Doctors who are, let's say a little loose with their prescribing practices, given nick names by their patients (nick names that tend to become common knowledge among other medical practitioners depending on the notoriety of the Doctor in question)? As soon as I saw the title of this thread the first thing I thought was that it was going to be about some dodgy Doctor who was colloquially known as 'Dr Amen' ~ like here in South Australia, back in the 90s at least, we had Doctors like 'Dr Groovy' and 'King Kong' so 'Dr Amen' just automatically fitted in with that for me until I realised that actually was his name.

 

[Jorje286]

I thought this article in relevant to the discussion: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/22/opinion/frank-bruni-hollywood-trumps-harvard.html It mentions Mehmet Oz, a Columbia surgeon. You don't have to be a celebrity though for the conflict of interest to exist. Money and shameless PR can really corrupt medicine.