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Michael Demitri, M.D.'s Archive

Types of Brain Imaging Techniques

Brain imaging techniques allow doctors and researchers to view activity or problems within the human brain, without invasive neurosurgery. There are a number of accepted, safe imaging techniques in use today in research facilities and ... Read more... »

What is Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)?

Functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, is a technique for measuring brain activity. It works by detecting the changes in blood oxygenation and flow that occur in response to neural activity – when a brain ... Read more... »

Medications for Depression

The kind of depression that will most likely benefit from treatment with medications is more than just "the blues." It is a condition that is prolonged, lasting two weeks or more, and interferes with a ... Read more... »

Medications: Special Considerations

Children, the elderly, and pregnant and nursing women have special concerns and needs when taking psychotherapeutic medications. Some effects of medications on the growing body, the aging body, and the childbearing body are known, but ... Read more... »

Common Side Effects of Psychiatric Medications

Benzodiazepines Drowsiness, impaired coordination, memory impairment, dry mouth. Brand names include Xanax, Klonopin, Valium and Ativan. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) Nausea, diarrhea, sexual dysfunction, insomnia, fatigue. Brand names include Celexa, Prozac, Luvox, Paxil and Zoloft. Buspirone ... Read more... »

Medications for Obsessive-compulsive Disorder

The modern era in the pharmacotherapy of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) began in the late 1960s with the observation that clomipramine, not other tricyclic antidepressants such as imipramine (Tofranil), was effective in treating OCD. Clomipramine is ... Read more... »

How Do I Know If I Have Obsessive-compulsive Disorder?

There is no reliable diagnostic test for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The diagnosis is usually based on a thorough face-to-face interview conducted by an experienced mental health professional. Perhaps someday, as we learn more about the ... Read more... »

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