Dr. Amen’s extensive classification system sounds interesting, and somewhat intuitive to the layperson.
I just wonder why there is NO mention of his approach in the scientific literature? He’s published books about the subject for goshsakes. Can anyone find any type of article in a peer-reviewed journal (i.e. any type of psychological journal, education journal, etc.) that examines his claims?
I’m open to his ideas, just the fact that he hasn’t published makes me rather skeptical. He has the facilities, why not do the empirical validation?
Re: Dr. Amen (continued)
Dr Amen was asked to co-author a chapter on functional brain imaging in the textbook Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry. He has presented his research at the National Institutes of Health.
It is true that Dr. Amen’s work is very new. It is true that some of the medical community has been slow to accept him. But I think that is changing. I feel we will hear very much from him in the future.
I hope that his brain imaging techniques can be used as a diagnostic tool. Right now, there is so much controversy: “Is it really ADD?” Unlike heart disease or cancer, there is no physical diagnostic test. So there is uncertainty as to whether ADD is real or not. With a diagnostic test, it would be more certain.
That doesn’t mean that the medical community or even Dr. Amen is prepared to say that his imaging techniques are to be used as a definitive diagnostic tool. I am just hoping that something more definitive comes along.
Re: Dr. Amen (continued)
I wish he’d come back to NIH, then I could see him speak! (darned west coasters).
I’m really interested in his approach, and I’m not surprised that functional imaging is coming to the forefront of neuropsychiatric research. I was just frustrated in trying to find journal articles documenting his approach.
Medicine is an art, not a “true” science (if it was, nobody would go to the doctor! Who wants to be told that they have a 20% chance of not being treated!?).
He has published. There is some research going on using imaging to study ADHD. I think what has happened is simply that Dr. Amen read some of the research and hypothesizing in the 80’s. He had his medical license and he was able to buy the imaging equipment ($$$$$$$). He began his own studies whereby he used extensive behavior checklists in concert with images. He has catalogued something like over 11,000 images from as many patients. He has watched for the match-up between the images and the behavioral symptoms. He has presented his work and published. He has not enjoyed widespread acceptance because he is not working at a reasearch university. He working in private practice. I was referred by his clinic to an M.D. who is affiliated with UC Irvine School of Medicine. This Dr. is a colleague of Dr. Amen and IS doing brain imaging work. Thus, I expect that eventually his work will enjoy greater buy-in. We could cite infinite numbers of examples of persons who did good work and were pooh-poohed by their colleagues, in many fields and throughout history.