This is the single biggest mistake you're making that's hurting your brain health, psychiatrist says

My opinion is that I wouldn't trust a damn thing Dr. Amen says. Here's an analysis of his stuff. Decide for yourself.

SPECT scan, brain and soul work together April 2011 

The latest here:

This is the single biggest mistake you're making that's hurting your brain health, psychiatrist says

The brain is one of the most vital organs in the body, and taking care of it is necessary to maintain focus, feel your best mentally and live a long life.

Longevity researcher Dan Buettner, who popularized the term "blue zones," discussed how to "hack your brain for a longer life," in a recent episode of his podcast. In conversation with psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Amen, Buettner asked Amen to share the biggest mistake Americans are making when it comes to their brain health.

"They don't think about it. They never really develop a relationship with [their brain]," Amen said. "And it's arguably the most important relationship you will ever have."

Even after years of training to become a psychiatrist, Amen admits that he didn't focus enough on his brain health until 1991 when he started offering brain imaging at his clinics. Amen scanned his own brain and learned it wasn't very healthy.

"In 1991, I'm already a double board-certified psychiatrist. I'm a physician. I was the top student in neuroscience and medical school, and I didn't care about my brain that much at all," he said.

"I had bad habits. I was only getting four hours of sleep at night. I was overweight, and I had just never really thought about the physical health of my brain."

To improve his brain health, Amen made major changes in his daily life, and decided to share what he learned with as many people as possible. He's written several books about his findings, including "Change Your Brain, Change Your Pain," which is publishing later this year.

Here are some practices that Amen recommends for a healthy brain:

• Exercise
• Learn new things
• Get omega-3 fatty acids in your diet
• Avoid pro-inflammatory foods like sugar and processed foods
• Know your genetic health history, and start a prevention plan to avoid developing conditions that run in your family
• Get enough sleep
• Don't text and drive: "You're more likely to get a head injury," in a car accident, which can have effects on the brain, he said.
• Avoid toxins like drugs and too much alcohol
• Detoxify your body, especially through the use of saunas 
• Don't believe everything your mind tells you "from a mental health standpoint." Just because your brain is telling you negative things about yourself doesn't mean they're true.
• Know your vitamin D levels, and improve them if needed
• Get your hormone levels tested

"You want to learn to love and care for your brain," Amen said. "Care about it [and] avoid things that hurt it."

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Wednesday, June 11, 2025

Brain Care Score

My earlier opinion/analysis of the SPECT scan and Dr. Amen here: SPECT scan, brain and soul work together April 2011

Brain Care Score

This analysis is nothing that I didn't know already, and I won't be changing anything based on this.

At the end you get ads for supplements and the godawful SPECT scan from Dr. Amen. 

Brain Type 1 and a Brain Fit Score of 93.

You like structure. You think clearly, plan ahead, and follow through—on time, every time. When others spiral, you stay steady.

Brain Type 1 is defined by smooth, balanced brain activity, especially in the cerebellum, the region that supports focus, coordination, and emotional regulation. It’s what helps you stay calm, clear-headed, and in control—even under pressure.

People with this Brain Type are known for being reliable and consistent. At home or at work, you’re often the organizer, the decision-maker, the one others count on.

With the right support, you can optimize these strengths for long-term brain health, clarity, and resilience.

Monday, April 6, 2020

Marijuana Chokes Alzheimer's-Related Brain Regions - Really?

Oh God, more fear-mongering.  I had to repost this since it wasn't vetted and showed up again in Alzheimer's & Dementia Weekly

I wouldn't trust anything here. Due to the use of SPECT scans by Dr. Amen they have a  reputation as only being used to deceive. Do you really think neuropsychiatric patients would have normal brains? And those patients are probably using marijuana to self medicate, thus this whole analysis is completely backwards.  The selection of patients for this research shows its bias from the start.

My 13 reasons for marijuana use post-stroke.  

Don't follow me, I'm not medically trained and I don't have a Dr. in front of my name.

Marijuana Chokes Alzheimer's-Related Brain Regions

 PREVENTION & THERAPY NEWS:
In a big study of 26,000 people, the hippocampus "choked" on marijuana. (The hippocampus is the brain's memory and learning center.) Marijuana lowered blood flow to levels unseen in any other group. Find out why this strongly suggests higher vulnerability to Alzheimer’s.

---

As the U.S. races to legalize marijuana for medicinal and recreational use, a large scale brain imaging study gives reason for caution. Published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, researchers using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), a sophisticated imaging study that evaluates blood flow and activity patterns, demonstrated abnormally low blood flow in virtually every area of the brain, in nearly 1,000 marijuana users compared to healthy controls.

Marijuana, Alzheimer's & the Hippocampus

The marijuana users' low blood flow patterns included areas known to be affected by Alzheimer’s pathology such as the hippocampus.

Continued below image...

IMAGE LEGEND: Example of a volume rendered brain SPECT image (top down view) of a healthy control compared to an 18-year old daily user of marijuana. While the control subject has symmetric activity, the marijuana user shows overall decreased perfusion.

All data were obtained for analysis from a large multi-site database, involving 26,268 patients who came for evaluation of complex, treatment resistant issues to one of nine outpatient neuropsychiatric clinics across the United States (Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Fairfield, and Brisbane, CA, Tacoma and Bellevue, WA, Reston, VA, Atlanta, GA and New York, NY) between 1995-2015. Of these, 982 current or former marijuana users had brain SPECT at rest and during a mental concentration task compared to almost 100 healthy controls. Predictive analytics with discriminant analysis was done to determine if brain SPECT regions can distinguish marijuana user brains from controls brain.

Low Blood Flow

Low blood flow in the hippocampus in marijuana users reliably distinguished marijuana users from controls. The right hippocampus during a concentration task was the single most predictive region in distinguishing marijuana users from their normal counterparts. Marijuana use is thought to interfere with memory formation by inhibiting activity in this part of the brain.

According to one of the co-authors on the study Elisabeth Jorandby, M.D., “As a physician who routinely sees marijuana users, what struck me was not only the global reduction in blood flow in the marijuana users brains, but that the hippocampus was the most affected region due to its role in memory and Alzheimer’s disease."

May Be Harbingers of Brain Damage

She continued, "Our research has proven that marijuana users have lower cerebral blood flow than non-users. Second, the most predictive region separating these two groups is low blood flow in the hippocampus on concentration brain SPECT imaging. This work suggests that marijuana use has damaging influences in the brain – particularly regions important in memory and learning and known to be affected by Alzheimer’s.”

Dr. George Perry, Editor in Chief of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease said, “Open use of marijuana, through legalization, will reveal the wide range of marijuana’s benefits and threats to human health. This study indicates troubling effects on the hippocampus that may be the harbingers of brain damage.”

Continued below ad...

---

MORE INFORMATION:

• Amen DG, Darmal B, Raji CA, Bao W, Jorandby L, Meysami S, Raghavendra CS (2017) Discriminative Properties of Hippocampal Hypoperfusion in Marijuana Users Compared to Healthy Controls: Implications for Marijuana Administration in Alzheimer’s Dementia. J Alzheimers Dis, doi: 10.3233/JAD-160833.
• Figure legend: Example of a volume rendered brain SPECT image (top down view) of a healthy control compared to an 18-year old daily user of marijuana. While the control subject has symmetric activity, the marijuana user shows overall decreased perfusion.

SOURCE:

• IOS Press

Sunday, June 16, 2019

Marijuana Chokes Alzheimer's-Related Brain Regions

I wouldn't trust anything here. Due to the use of SPECT scans by Dr. Amen they have a  reputation as only being used to deceive. Do you really think neuropsychiatric patients would have normal brains? The selection of patients for this research shows its bias from the start.

My 13 reasons for marijuana use post-stroke.  

Don't follow me, I'm not medically trained and I don't have a Dr. in front of my name.

 

Marijuana Chokes Alzheimer's-Related Brain Regions

PREVENTION & THERAPY NEWS:
In a big study of 26,000 people, the hippocampus "choked" on marijuana. (The hippocampus is the brain's memory and learning center.) Marijuana lowered blood flow to levels unseen in any other group. Find out why this strongly suggests higher vulnerability to Alzheimer’s.

---

As the U.S. races to legalize marijuana for medicinal and recreational use, a large scale brain imaging study gives reason for caution. Published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, researchers using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), a sophisticated imaging study that evaluates blood flow and activity patterns, demonstrated abnormally low blood flow in virtually every area of the brain, in nearly 1,000 marijuana users compared to healthy controls.

Marijuana, Alzheimer's & the Hippocampus

The marijuana users' low blood flow patterns included areas known to be affected by Alzheimer’s pathology such as the hippocampus.

Continued below image...

IMAGE LEGEND: Example of a volume rendered brain SPECT image (top down view) of a healthy control compared to an 18-year old daily user of marijuana. While the control subject has symmetric activity, the marijuana user shows overall decreased perfusion.

All data were obtained for analysis from a large multi-site database, involving 26,268 patients who came for evaluation of complex, treatment resistant issues to one of nine outpatient neuropsychiatric clinics across the United States (Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Fairfield, and Brisbane, CA, Tacoma and Bellevue, WA, Reston, VA, Atlanta, GA and New York, NY) between 1995-2015. Of these, 982 current or former marijuana users had brain SPECT at rest and during a mental concentration task compared to almost 100 healthy controls. Predictive analytics with discriminant analysis was done to determine if brain SPECT regions can distinguish marijuana user brains from controls brain.

Low Blood Flow

Low blood flow in the hippocampus in marijuana users reliably distinguished marijuana users from controls. The right hippocampus during a concentration task was the single most predictive region in distinguishing marijuana users from their normal counterparts. Marijuana use is thought to interfere with memory formation by inhibiting activity in this part of the brain.

According to one of the co-authors on the study Elisabeth Jorandby, M.D., “As a physician who routinely sees marijuana users, what struck me was not only the global reduction in blood flow in the marijuana users brains, but that the hippocampus was the most affected region due to its role in memory and Alzheimer’s disease."

May Be Harbingers of Brain Damage

She continued, "Our research has proven that marijuana users have lower cerebral blood flow than non-users. Second, the most predictive region separating these two groups is low blood flow in the hippocampus on concentration brain SPECT imaging. This work suggests that marijuana use has damaging influences in the brain – particularly regions important in memory and learning and known to be affected by Alzheimer’s.”

Dr. George Perry, Editor in Chief of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease said, “Open use of marijuana, through legalization, will reveal the wide range of marijuana’s benefits and threats to human health. This study indicates troubling effects on the hippocampus that may be the harbingers of brain damage.”

Continued below ad...

---

MORE INFORMATION:

• Amen DG, Darmal B, Raji CA, Bao W, Jorandby L, Meysami S, Raghavendra CS (2017) Discriminative Properties of Hippocampal Hypoperfusion in Marijuana Users Compared to Healthy Controls: Implications for Marijuana Administration in Alzheimer’s Dementia. J Alzheimers Dis, doi: 10.3233/JAD-160833.
• Figure legend: Example of a volume rendered brain SPECT image (top down view) of a healthy control compared to an 18-year old daily user of marijuana. While the control subject has symmetric activity, the marijuana user shows overall decreased perfusion.

SOURCE:

• IOS Press

Wednesday, August 22, 2018

The Mental Disorders That Accelerate Brain Damage

I'd have to say that not enough analysis was done since the cannabis consumption was probably done to self treat a mental disorder. We need complete legalization of marijuana although I will just drive 100 miles to Canada and see how tight customs is. Due to the use of SPECT scans by Dr. Amen they have a  reputation as only being used to deceive.

My 13 reasons for marijuana use post-stroke.  

Don't follow me, I'm not medically trained. 

The Mental Disorders That Accelerate Brain Damage

Largest ever study of its type reveals the disorders that accelerate brain aging.

Schizophrenia, cannabis abuse and bipolar disorder accelerate brain aging the most, new research finds.
Schizophrenia ages the brain by an average of 4 years, cannabis abuse by 2.8 years and bipolar disorder by 1.6 years.

→ Enjoying these psych studies? Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month (includes ad-free experience and more articles).

Fifth on the list, behind ADHD, was alcohol abuse, which ages the brain by an average of 1.4 years.
Depression and anxiety, however, were not linked to any premature brain aging.

Dr Daniel G. Amen, who led the study, said:

“Based on one of the largest brain imaging studies ever done, we can now track common disorders and behaviors that prematurely age the brain.
Better treatment of these disorders can slow or even halt the process of brain aging.
The cannabis abuse finding was especially important, as our culture is starting to see marijuana as an innocuous substance.
This study should give us pause about it.”

The conclusions come from the largest ever study of its type of 62,454 brain scans on over 30,000 people.
The SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) brain scans measured the regional blood flow in the brain and how it is reduced in different disorders.

Dr George Perry, commenting on the study, said:

“This is one of the first population-based imaging studies, and these large studies are essential to answer how to maintain brain structure and function during aging.
The effect of modifiable and non-modifiable factors of brain aging will further guide advice to maintain cognitive function.”

Mr Sachit Egan, co-investigator from Google, said:

“This paper represents an important step forward in our understanding of how the brain operates throughout the lifespan.
The results indicate that we can predict an individual’s age based on patterns of cerebral blood flow.
Additionally, groundwork has been laid to further explore how common psychiatric disorders can influence healthy patterns of cerebral blood flow.”

→ Explore PsyBlog’s ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean:

• NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion
• The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic
• Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything
• Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do

The study was published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease (Amen et al., 2018; image credit, Dr Daniel G. Amen).

Sunday, December 4, 2016

Marijuana Chokes Alzheimer's-Related Brain Regions

Another sky is falling piece of research. It is vastly more likely that people with low blood flow are self-treating themselves with marijuana to feel better. Taken from neuropsychiatric clinics which pretty much proves my point.  These doctors need to learn about cause and effect.  This all probably part of a concerted effort by the drug industry to prevent a non-patentable drug from entering the marketplace. Over 500,000 stroke survivors a year in the US could be treated better with marijuana.  Don't fall for these negative articles.

My 13 reasons for marijuana use post-stroke.  

But don't listen to me, I have absolutely no medical training. You are going to have to figure out how to dose yourself since your doctor will know nothing and no one will do translational research until our fucking federal legislators legalize it.

Marijuana Chokes Alzheimer's-Related Brain Regions

As the U.S. races to legalize marijuana for medicinal and recreational use, a new, large scale brain imaging study gives reason for caution. Published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, researchers using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), a sophisticated imaging study that evaluates blood flow and activity patterns, demonstrated abnormally low blood flow in virtually every area of the brain studies in nearly 1,000 marijuana compared to healthy controls, including areas known to be affected by Alzheimer’s pathology such as the hippocampus.



All data were obtained for analysis from a large multisite database, involving 26,268 patients who came for evaluation of complex, treatment resistant issues to one of nine outpatient neuropsychiatric clinics across the United States (Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Fairfield, and Brisbane, CA, Tacoma and Bellevue, WA, Reston, VA, Atlanta, GA and New York, NY) between 1995-2015. Of these, 982 current or former marijuana users had brain SPECT at rest and during a mental concentration task compared to almost 100 healhty controls. Predictive analytics with discriminant analysis was done to determine if brain SPECT regions can distinguish marijuana user brains from controls brain. Low blood flow in the hippocampus in marijuana users reliably distinguished marijuana users from controls. The right hippocampus during a concentration task was the single most predictive region in distinguishing marijuana users from their normal counterparts. Marijuana use is thought to interfere with memory formation by inhibiting activity in this part of the brain.

According to one of the co-authors on the study Elisabeth Jorandby, M.D., “As a physician who routinely sees marijuana users, what struck me was not only the global reduction in blood flow in the marijuana users brains , but that the hippocampus was the most affected region due to its role in memory and Alzheimer’s disease. Our research has proven that marijuana users have lower cerebral blood flow than non-users. Second, the most predictive region separating these two groups is low blood flow in the hippocampus on concentration brain SPECT imaging. This work suggests that marijuana use has damaging influences in the brain – particularly regions important in memory and learning and known to be affected by Alzheimer’s.”

Dr. George Perry, Editor in Chief of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease said, “Open use of marijuana, through legalization, will reveal the wide range of marijuana’s benefits and threats to human health. This study indicates troubling effects on the hippocampus that may be the harbingers of brain damage.”  (No it doesn't, you don't know what the fuck you are looking at)

MORE INFORMATION:

• Amen DG, Darmal B, Raji CA, Bao W, Jorandby L, Meysami S, Raghavendra CS (2017) Discriminative Properties of Hippocampal Hypoperfusion in Marijuana Users Compared to Healthy Controls: Implications for Marijuana Administration in Alzheimer’s Dementia. J Alzheimers Dis, doi: 10.3233/JAD-160833.
• Figure legend: Example of a volume rendered brain SPECT image (top down view) of a healthy control compared to an 18-year old daily user of marijuana. While the control subject has symmetric activity, the marijuana user shows overall decreased perfusion.

SOURCE:

• IOS Press

Friday, January 1, 2016

Single photon emission computed tomography imaging of cerebral blood flow, blood–brain barrier disruption, and apoptosis time course after focal cerebral ischemia in rats

By following up on this in humans we should be able to calculate the numbers of neurons dying during the neuronal cascade of death in the first week. We already know that 1.9 million die per minute during the actual stroke, which leads to the mantra, 'Time is Brain'. We've known this for ten years and yet our fucking failures of stroke associations have done nothing in those ten years to solve anything in stroke. How many gazillions of dead neurons are our stroke associations responsible for killing?  If we can come up with the number dying the first week we might have a chance of actually getting researchers to solve the problem of stopping the 5 causes of neuronal death. But since we have NO stroke strategy or stroke leadership in any part of stroke no will even attempt to solve this. Your children and grandchildren are fucking screwed if they have a stroke since nothing will be done better than today.
http://wso.sagepub.com/content/11/1/117.abstract?

1. Philippe Garrigue1,2,3
2. Laura Giacomino4
3. Chiara Bucci5
4. Valeria Muzio5
5. Maria A Filannino5
6. Florence Sabatier1,6
7. Françoise Dignat-George1,7
8. Pascale Pisano1,8
9. Benjamin Guillet1,2,3⇑

1. ¹INSERM, INSERM UMR_S1076 VRCM Aix-Marseille Université, France
2. ²APHM, Hôpital La Timone, Service de Radiopharmacie, Marseille, France
3. ³CERIMED, Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille, France
4. ⁴Département Anesthésie-Réanimation adulte, APHM, Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille, France
5. ⁵Advanced Accelerator Applications, Colleretto Giacosa (TO), Italy
6. ⁶APHM, Laboratoire de Culture et Thérapie Cellulaire, INSERM, Hôpital La Conception, Marseille, France
7. ⁷APHM, Hôpital La Conception, Service d’Hématologie, Marseille, France
8. ⁸APHM, Pôle Pharmacie, Marseille, France

1. Benjamin Guillet, Faculté de Pharmacie, 27 Bd Jean Moulin, 13005 Marseille, France. Email: benjamin.guillet@univ-amu.fr

Abstract

Background Cerebral ischemia is a leading cause of disability worldwide and no other effective therapy has been validated to date than intravenous thrombolysis. In this context, many preclinical models have been developed and recent advances in preclinical imaging represent promising tools. Thus, we proposed here to characterize in vivo time profiles of cerebral blood flow, blood–brain barrier disruption and apoptosis following a transient middle cerebral artery occlusion in rats using SPECT/CT imaging.

Methods Rats underwent a 1-h middle cerebral artery occlusion followed by reperfusion. Cerebral blood flow, blood–brain barrier disruption and apoptosis were evaluated by SPECT/CT imaging using respectively ^99mTc-HMPAO, ^99mTc-DTPA and the experimental ^99mTc-Annexin V-128, up to 14 days after middle cerebral artery occlusion. Histological evaluation of apoptosis has been performed using TUNEL method to validate the ^99mTc-Annexin V-128 uptake.

Results ^99mTc-HMPAO cerebral blood flow evaluation showed hypoperfusion during occlusion, partially restored on days 4 and 7 and sustained up to 14 days after middle cerebral artery occlusion. ^99mTc-DTPA SPECT/CT showed a blood–brain barrier disruption starting on day 1 post-middle cerebral artery occlusion, peaking on day 2, with barrier integrity totally restored on day 7. ^99mTc-Annexin V-128 SPECT/CT imaging showed significant positive correlation with TUNEL immunohistochemistry and allowed ischemic-induced apoptosis to be detected from day 2 to day 7, peaking on day 3 after middle cerebral artery occlusion.

Conclusions Using SPECT/CT imaging, we showed that after transient middle cerebral artery occlusion in rat there was a sustained decrease in cerebral blood flow followed by blood–brain barrier disruption preceding meanwhile apoptosis. Rodent SPECT/CT imaging of cerebral blood flow, blood–brain barrier disruption and apoptosis appears to be an efficient tool for evaluating neuroprotective drugs and regenerative therapies against cerebral ischemia and time-windows for therapeutic intervention.

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

A novel SPECT-based approach reveals early mechanisms of central and peripheral inflammation after cerebral ischemia

So maybe SPECT scans can be useful  as compared to Dr. Amens use of them.
http://www.nature.com/jcbfm/journal/v35/n12/full/jcbfm2015174a.html

Krisztián Szigeti¹, Ildikó Horváth¹, Dániel S Veres¹, Bernadett Martinecz², Nikolett Lénárt², Noémi Kovács³, Erika Bakcsa¹, Alexa Márta¹, Mariann Semjéni³, Domokos Máthé³ and Ádám Dénes²

1. ¹Department of Biophysics and Radiation Biology, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
2. ²Laboratory of Neuroimmunology, Institute of Experimental Medicine, Budapest, Hungary
3. ³CROmed Translational Research Centers, Budapest, Hungary

Correspondence: Dr A Denes, Laboratory of Neuroimmunology, Institute of Experimental Medicine, Szigony u. 43, IX. Tuzoltó u. 37-47, Budapest 1083, Hungary. E-mail: denesa@koki.hu

Received 23 April 2015; Revised 8 June 2015; Accepted 17 June 2015
Advance online publication 29 July 2015

Top of page

Abstract

Inflammation that develops in the brain and peripheral organs after stroke contributes profoundly to poor outcome of patients. However, mechanisms through which inflammation impacts on brain injury and overall outcome are improperly understood, in part because the earliest inflammatory events after brain injury are not revealed by current imaging tools. Here, we show that single-photon emission computed tomography (NanoSPECT/CT Plus) allows visualization of blood brain barrier (BBB) injury after experimental stroke well before changes can be detected with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Early 99mTc-DTPA (diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid) signal changes predict infarct development and systemic inflammation preceding experimental stroke leads to very early perfusion deficits and increased BBB injury within 2 hours after the onset of ischemia. Acute brain injury also leads to peripheral inflammation and immunosuppression, which contribute to poor outcome of stroke patients. The SPECT imaging revealed early (within 2 hours) changes in perfusion, barrier function and inflammation in the lungs and the gut after experimental stroke, with good predictive value for the development of histopathologic changes at later time points. Collectively, visualization of early inflammatory changes after stroke could open new translational research avenues to elucidate the interactions between central and peripheral inflammation and to evaluate in vivo ‘multi-system’ effects of putative anti-inflammatory treatments.

Complete article available at the link.

Saturday, May 16, 2015

Joe Namath gets results from hyperbaric chamber treatments for concussions

Well well, have your doctor analyze this for a bit. Is it placebo? Due to the use of SPECT scans by Dr. Amen they have a  reputation as only being used to deceive. This is why you talk to your doctor or your stroke association for validation before going down this questionable route.
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/joe-namath-gets-results-from-hyperbaric-chamber-treatments-for-concussions-164511928.html

Monday, January 6, 2014

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Can Improve Post Concussion Syndrome Years after Mild Traumatic Brain Injury - Randomized Prospective Trial

I'm not sure I trust this. At least one of the authors, Dr. Shai Efrati, is directly associated with
Head of the Hyperbaric Unit at Assaf Harofeh Medical Center. Using SPECT scan to prove anything may be worthless.
From here:
http://neurobollocks.wordpress.com/2013/03/10/utterly-shameless-diagnostic-brain-imaging-neurobollocks/ 

Why use SPECT? The spatial resolution of the images is crap, and no-one uses it for clinical or research work that much anymore.
And the research here:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3829860/#

Rahav Boussi-Gross,^#1 Haim Golan,^#3,4 Gregori Fishlev,¹ Yair Bechor,¹ Olga Volkov,^3,4 Jacob Bergan,¹ Mony Friedman,¹ Dan Hoofien,^6,7 Nathan Shlamkovitch,⁸ Eshel Ben-Jacob,^2,5,9,10,* and Shai Efrati^1,2,3,10,*

Jinglu Ai, Editor

Author information ► Article notes ► Copyright and License information ►

Go to:

Abstract

Background

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of death and disability in the US. Approximately 70-90% of the TBI cases are classified as mild, and up to 25% of them will not recover and suffer chronic neurocognitive impairments. The main pathology in these cases involves diffuse brain injuries, which are hard to detect by anatomical imaging yet noticeable in metabolic imaging. The current study tested the effectiveness of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) in improving brain function and quality of life in mTBI patients suffering chronic neurocognitive impairments.

Methods and Findings

The trial population included 56 mTBI patients 1–5 years after injury with prolonged post-concussion syndrome (PCS). The HBOT effect was evaluated by means of prospective, randomized, crossover controlled trial: the patients were randomly assigned to treated or crossover groups. Patients in the treated group were evaluated at baseline and following 40 HBOT sessions; patients in the crossover group were evaluated three times: at baseline, following a 2-month control period of no treatment, and following subsequent 2-months of 40 HBOT sessions. The HBOT protocol included 40 treatment sessions (5 days/week), 60 minutes each, with 100% oxygen at 1.5 ATA. “Mindstreams” was used for cognitive evaluations, quality of life (QOL) was evaluated by the EQ-5D, and changes in brain activity were assessed by SPECT imaging. Significant improvements were demonstrated in cognitive function and QOL in both groups following HBOT but no significant improvement was observed following the control period. SPECT imaging revealed elevated brain activity in good agreement with the cognitive improvements.

Conclusions

HBOT can induce neuroplasticity leading to repair of chronically impaired brain functions and improved quality of life in mTBI patients with prolonged PCS at late chronic stage.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov

NCT00715052

Friday, April 15, 2011

SPECT scan, brain and soul work together

Daniel G. Amen, M.D., runs the Amen Clinics, writes books, gives lectures, maintains a Web site, and makes other media appearances. He recommends single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) to help diagnose and manage cases of brain trauma, underachievement, school failure, depression, obsessive compulsive disorders, anxiety, aggressiveness, cognitive decline, and brain toxicity from drugs or alcohol.
His website is here: http://www.theamensolution.com/
 Sounds like the nostrums from the 1800s I posted about - promise everything, deliver a tiny bit.
And for the negative view or Dr. Amen:  http://quackwatch.org/06ResearchProjects/amen.html
Daniel G. Amen, M.D., runs the Amen Clinics, writes books, gives lectures, maintains a Web site, and makes other media appearances. He recommends single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) to help diagnose and manage cases of brain trauma, underachievement, school failure, depression, obsessive compulsive disorders, anxiety, aggressiveness, cognitive decline, and brain toxicity from drugs or alcohol. He claims to use SPECT to "re-balance a brain whose activity patterns are clearly abnormal.” He describes SPECT as a "window into the hardware of the soul." He claims that SPECT scanting provides “guidance in the application of specific medications or other treatments such as supplements, neurofeedback, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.”
For about four years (2002 to 2006), the The Amen Clinic's home page stated:
Everything starts and ends in your Brain-Soul connection.
How your brain and soul work together determines how happy you feel, how successful you become, and how well you connect with others. The brain-soul connection is vastly more powerful than your conscious will. Will power falters when the physical functioning of the brain and the health of your soul fail to support your desires, as seen by illogical behaviors like overeating, smoking, drug and alcohol abuse, and compulsive spending.
It is the aim of The Amen Clinics to provide instructional programs and materials, evaluations and medical treatment where necessary to help you to understand and direct your mind to enhance your relationships, your work, and your health!
The site currently (2007) states:
SPECT . . . . basically tells us three things: areas of the brain that work well, areas of the brain that work too hard and areas of the brain that do not work hard enough. Once we know how the brain works, the goal of treatment is to balance brain function, such as calm the overactive areas and enhance the underactive ones.
SPECT creates a colored picture representing blood flow or chemical reactions in different areas of the brain. It requires the injection of a radioactive material. Areas of low blood flow show up as apparent “holes” on colored pictures of the brain, giving a moth-eaten appearance. Amen says that when patients improve clinically, the appearance of their follow-up scan typically improves. For example, patients using marijuana had areas of low activity in the temporal lobes compared to patients not using the drug. Dr. Amen says he can literally show his patients “this is what your brain looks like on drugs.” In one case he reported, a patient with attention deficit disorder, obsessive thinking, anger outbursts, and depression had demonstrable defects on the initial scan which were visibly improved after three years of clomipramine therapy. Dr. Amen says that this kind of graphic demonstration can help persuade patients that their problem is physical or physiological and might be helped with medication or other treatments.
The Amen Clinics charge $3,250 for a "comprehensive evaluation," which included the patient's history, two SPECT scans (concentration scan and baseline scan), a physician consultation, and a 30-minute treatment follow-up appointment. Follow-up scans after treatment are $795 each.
Key Questions
The key question in evaluating a diagnostic test is whether or not its findings are useful in determining what treatment the patient should have. SPECT is a research tool useful for exploring how the brain functions, but the findings are nonspecific, and uses related to treatment of emotional or behavioral problems should be considered experimental. Dr. Amen has vast clinical experience and says he has performed and interpreted more than 35,000 scans. However, I do not believe he has demonstrated that specific scan patterns reliably reflect specific clinical problems and how they should be treated. Even when he is able to show a correlation between a diagnosis and an area of low perfusion (blood flow), he has not shown what this really means and how it could aid clinical treatment. Is low perfusion an indication of the primary pathology or perhaps just a secondary brain response to the symptoms? His published research comprises “preliminary studies,” and most psychiatrists believe it is premature to use SPECT clinically. In fact, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) has issued two skeptical reports, one pertaining to children and adolescents and the other pertaining to adults.
In 2005, the APA Council on Children, Adolescents and Their Families concluded:
Although knowledge is increasing regarding specific pathways and specific brain areas involved in mental disease states, at present the use of brain imaging to study psychiatric disorders is still considered a research tool. . . . . Particular caveats are indicated with regard to brain imaging involving radioactive nucleotides for children and adolescents because of children’s known greater sensitivity to radiation and risk of radiation induced-cancer. At the present time, the available evidence does not support the use brain imaging for clinical diagnosis or treatment of psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents.
The APA's Psychiatric Evaluation of Adults Guideline (2006) states:
In patients with schizophrenia and mood and anxiety disorders, structural and functional neuroimaging studies have reported differences between patients and healthy control persons as well as differences in some patient subgroups and in responders and nonresponders to some treatments. Nevertheless, the clinical utility of neuroimaging techniques for planning of individualized treatment has not yet been shown. Further research is needed to demonstrate a clinical role for structural and functional neuroimaging in establishing psychiatric diagnoses, monitoring illness progression, and predicting prognoses.
Dr. Amen claims to be able to choose the best therapy based mainly on scan results, but this claim is supported only by anecdotal evidence and testimonials.
The following questions might be useful for evaluating Dr. Amen's claims:

• Do patients treated at the Amen Clinics do better than patients treated by competent professionals who do not use SPECT?

• Are the SPECT findings consistent enough that blinded observers could agree on the diagnosis from the scan alone?

• What are the rates of false positives and false negatives?

• Have the effects of different treatments on the scans actually been compared?

• What is "brain balance," and how is it measured?

• What does the scan tell us that would change how we treat a patient?

• Does Dr. Amen claim that SPECT can help evaluate the patient's "soul"? If so, what gets measured?

• Why did Dr. Amen leap into clinical applications, writing for the public, appearing on television, and lecturing about findings that most doctors would consider preliminary?

I believe it is improper to charge thousands of dollars for a test that has not been validated and may not be safe. I don't think any of Amen's research has provided clear evidence that patients who have had SPECT scans have superior clinical outcomes to adequately treated patients who have not been scanned. That's really the bottom line—especially with an expensive test that involves significant radiation. At the very least, he should be describing the test as experimental.
My opinion, don't get sucked into this one. I saw a video on his stuff and boy did it not convince me of anything useful about it.