Posted by Willful on July 14, 2013, at 11:28:58
In reply to Re: Images of 'Damaged' Brains? Or Bad Science?, posted by linkadge on July 13, 2013, at 20:29:07
1. An overview of brain imaging and psychiatrist diagnosis on an ama website: http://virtualmentor.ama-assn.org/2012/06/stas1-1206.html
Also I append two scientific articles suggesting the in the future SPECT imaging may well be useful in diagnosing alzheimer's, but this requires considerable future development. Both articles state that SPECT is potentially useful in diagnosing (imaging) amyloid strands, but the criteria for these images has not yet been identified.
1.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20455860
Semin Nucl Med. 2011 Jul;41(4):283-99.
doi: 10.1053/j.semnuclmed.2011.02.005.
Positron emission tomography radiopharmaceuticals for imaging brain Beta-amyloid.
Vallabhajosula S.
Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University and New York Presbyterian Hospital, NY, USA. svallabh@med.cornell.edu
Abstract~~~~ "Aβ probes could significantly contribute to the early diagnosis of AD, the elucidation of the underlying neuropathological processes and the evaluation of anti-amyloid therapies which are currently under investigation. The development of SPECT and PET tracers for Aβ imaging represents an active area in radiopharmaceutical design"
(note: beta amyloid = (Aβ) plaques )
~~~
2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17370649
Brain Nerve. 2007 Mar;59(3):233-40.
[Molecular imaging of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain].
[Article in Japanese]
~~~ " Thus, the development of radiotracers for in vivo imaging beta-amyloid plaques in the aging human brain is an important and active area of molecular imaging. When used in combination with positron emission tomography (PET) or single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), amyloid imaging agents could serve as surrogate markers in early diagnosis and neuropathogenesis studies of AD."Note: the article is in Japanese
~~
These studies suggest that future research holds considerable promise for using PET and SPECT imaging in diagnosing Alzheimer's when the appropriate radioactive binders have been developed. This has yet to be done.
As far as general psychiatic diagnosis: from other reading, as in the overview cited above, it is clear that SPECT imaging is a long way from being used for psychiatrist diagnosis -- but in the long term, it is potentially useful.
To me this all suggests that while SPECT imaging may indeed by revelatory if the appropriate long-term research, testing and evaluation is done-- we are a long way from being able to do this in any sort of meaningful way.
So the best we could say for Amen is that he is seemingly not properly trained, has published no research (despite claiming to have done 50,000 scans-)-- and while he may believe he has found something, he is very much jumping the gun.
Emsam.
Abilify
Provigil
Rilutek
poster:Willful
thread:1047108
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20130706/msgs/1047168.html