Howard Aaron Aronow MD

Z scores that account for age could be a promising way to create retinal optical coherence tomography-derived measures to use in multiple sclerosis prognostication, according to a study in Neurology: Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation: https://bit.ly/3xJKXV9

On National Doctor's Day, I extend our deepest gratitude and appreciation to all the doctors who have dedicated their lives to healing and saving others. Your commitment, compassion, and tireless efforts, especially in challenging times, make a world of difference. Thank you for being at the forefront of ensuring our health and well-being.

Happy Doctor's Day to all the healthcare heroes!

How do you feel after a bad night's sleep? 💤

November is Epilepsy Awareness Month! Did you know epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases globally? Around 50 million people have it.
Epilepsy is a disabling condition that causes recurring seizures. Seizures happen when there’s a burst of irregular electrical signals in the brain, and may cause loss of consciousness and involuntary movements.

Epilepsy Awareness Month Epilepsy is a disabling condition characterized by recurring seizures that have no other known cause. Seizures occur when there’s a burst of irregular electr...

Alzheimer’s disease and dementia are often talked about interchangeably. Neuroscientist John Morrison explains the condition and the leading cause of dementia: Alzheimer’s disease.

The Short Answer: What Causes Dementia? Alzheimer’s disease and dementia are often talked about interchangeably. Neuroscientist John Morrison explains the condition and the leading cause of dementi...

“This is the largest study comparing ketamine and ECT treatments for depression that has ever been done, and the only one that also measured impacts to memory.”
— Amit Anand, professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School

Ketamine found effective in treatment-resistant depression A new study finds ketamine as effective as electroconvulsive therapy (without its major side effects) for the treatment of nonpsychotic, treatment-resistant depression.

Gmar chatima tova!

Wishing you meaningful Yom Kippur and a blessed year ahead!

Co***ne is a highly addictive stimulant drug that can have both short- and long-term effects on the brain, including irritability, paranoia, and impaired cognitive functions. It can also increase the risk of stroke, seizures, and heart attack.

If a person uses co***ne, they may develop substance use disorder. A doctor can recommend treatment to help a person stop taking co***ne, including behavioral therapy and motivational incentives.

People should call 911 immediately if they think they or someone else is experiencing a co***ne overdose.

Effects of co***ne on your brain: Long term, short term, and more Co***ne is a stimulant drug that is highly addictive. If a person uses co***ne, it can have both long- and short-term effects on their brain. Learn more here.

Prior authorization is a common cost-cutting tool used by health insurers that requires patients and doctors to secure approval before moving forward with many tests, procedures, and prescription medications. Insurers say the process helps them control costs by preventing medically unnecessary care. But patients say the often time-consuming and frustrating rules create hurdles that delay or deny access to the treatments they need. In some cases, delays and denials equal death, doctors say.

Doctors and patients try to shame insurers online to reverse prior authorization denials Sally Nix was furious when her health insurance company refused to pay for the infusions she needs to ease her chronic pain and fatigue.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to well over 200 million infections, with a fatal outcome in over 4.5 million cases. In the survivors, most recovered completely but some showed long-haul symptoms – now often called Long COVID.

COVID-19 and Heart Damage One important potentially long-term clinical consequence of COVID-19 seems to be heart damage. This article looks at this in more detail.

As viruses are exposed to environmental selection pressures, they mutate and evolve, generating variants that may possess enhanced virulence. Some of the primary concerns that public health officials have as these new variants continue to emerge include their viral transmissibility, reinfection rates, disease severity, and vaccine effectiveness.

How Viruses Like The Coronavirus Mutate Genetic mutations aren’t as scary as they sound. With RNA viruses, like the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19, they’re happening constantly — bas...

Positive Life Series
May 2, 2023 6:00 PM
Neurological Long-Term Effects of COVID-19​ and HIV.

Speaker: Dr. Howard Aaron Aronow MD
Neurologist, DAP Health & Private Practice
PALM SPRINGS CULTURAL CENTER
This meeting can be accessed virtually via ZOOM.

PLEASE RSVP BY SUNDAY, APRIL 30TH IF YOU WOULD LIKE A MEAL. (CLICK THROUGH THE REGISTRATION LINK AND SELECT ONE OF TWO BOXED DINNER OPTIONS).

HARP: Positive Life Series: Neurological Complications of HIV Speaker Dr. Howard Aronow, Neurologist, DAP Health & Private Practice Presents "Neurological Complications of HIV"

Being infected with HIV is no longer a terminal diagnosis, but researchers are looking to fill the gaps that remain to ensure treatment reaches all who need it.

Millions of People Living with HIV Are Alive, Thanks to a 20-Year Public Health Effort Being infected with HIV is no longer a terminal diagnosis, but researchers are looking to fill the gaps that remain to ensure treatment reaches all who need it

Researchers have found evidence that the COVID-causing virus, SARS-CoV-2, can reach the brain and other parts of the central nervous system. This contact may lead to persistent and devastating symptoms of long COVID, which-more and more scientists say-appears to be a neurological disease. Cognitive symptoms include difficulty thinking and remembering things. And physical ailments, such as pain, extreme fatigue and a racing heartbeat, are tied to problems with the autonomic nervous system, which ordinarily runs our bodies on autopilot.

Long COVID Now Looks like a Neurological Disease, Helping Doctors to Focus Treatments The causes of long COVID, which disables millions, may come together in the brain and nervous system

Long COVID has affected millions of people. At least one in 13 American adults (7.5 percent) who have had COVID-19 exhibit long COVID symptoms, according to a survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A study published in Neurotherapeutics in September 2022 by Igor J. Koralnik, MD, FAAN, estimates that as many as one-third of patients may experience persistent neurologic symptoms as part of a postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection syndrome, also known as long COVID.

How to Know If You Have Long COVID With no consensus on a clinical definition of long COVID, it can be difficult to tell if you have it. Symptoms can include fatigue, shortness of breath, chronic coughing, chest pain, joint pain, and heart palpitations. Common neurologic signs are “brain fog,” headaches, difficulty sleeping, a lo...

Go easy on yourself this holiday season with these fresh, healthy, and simple salads, soup, and biscuits.

Healthy Holiday Side Dish Recipes

What is telemedicine?
Telemedicine is an easy to use, HIPAA-compliant way to receive quality medical care virtually rather than in person.

The process is simple. After you request a virtual appointment, your provider sends a calendar invite with a link to digital registration forms. You complete the forms and, using the link provided, meet your provider online on the date and time specified in your invitation.

In addition to receiving high-quality health care without going to the doctor’s office, there’s another benefit: You don’t have to be in the same location as your physician.

If you live a distance from your primary care physician or specialist, you can still get the medical care you need in a comfortable, convenient way through telemedicine.

Now accepting online appointments.
www.aronowmd.com
(760) 880-4727

Millions of Americans are experiencing the mysterious post–COVID-19 infection syndrome known as long COVID. President Joe Biden pledged Tuesday (April 5) in a presidential memorandum to increase support for patients, including bolstering insurance coverage and accelerating federal research into the underlying causes in the hopes of providing some relief.

Biden Orders More Research on Long COVID A new presidential memorandum requires the Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate a government-wide push to generate a research action plan for the condition.

"A ketogenic diet, which is high in fats, adequate in protein, and low in carbohydrates, allows the body to utilize fat as its primary source of energy instead of sugars, thus mimicking a fasting state. A ketogenic diet helps lower blood sugar levels in people with type II diabetes and improve seizure control in people with epilepsy. However, it has not been well-studied in people with MS. Diet changes can be an inexpensive way to improve overall health, so our study explored whether eating a ketogenic diet is safe, tolerable and beneficial for people living with MS."

Study author J. Nicholas Brenton, MD, of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.

Ketogenic diet may reduce disability, improve quality of life in people with MS A ketogenic diet, which primarily consists of foods like meat, fish, eggs, heavy cream, butter, oils and non-starchy vegetables like pea pods, carrots, broccoli and peppers, may be safe for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) according to a preliminary study presented at the American Academy of Neur...

Happy to all current and future physicians who have dedicated their lives to healing and helping others! 🩺💙

Chronic pain is pain that lasts for more than 3 months. About one quarter of kids and teens have this type of pain. Chronic pain includes problems like frequent headaches, stomachaches, or ongoing joint or muscle pain and it often interferes with kids’ sleep, school, activities, and friendships. Even though chronic pain can have a big impact on kids’ lives, “chronic” does not mean “permanent.” Most kids recover from chronic pain. However, many kids are surprised to hear that a part of getting better involves learning a group of skills that are based in psychology. These skills include a combination of mind-body relaxation techniques and strategies for breaking the cycles of pain focused thoughts and avoidance behaviors. Learning these skills helps to boost feelings of comfort, lowers pain, and gets kids back to doing the things they love!

How Mind-Body Skills Can Reduce Pain and Improve Comfort Chronic pain is pain that lasts for more than 3 months. About one quarter of kids and teens have this type of pain. Chronic pain includes problems like frequent headaches, stomachaches, or ongoing joint or muscle pain and it often interferes with kids’ sleep, school, activities, and friendships. E...

Mushrooms have been making headlines due to their many health advantages. Not only do they lower one’s risk of cancer and premature death, but new research led by Penn State College of Medicine also reveals that these superfoods may benefit a person’s mental health.

Mushroom Consumption May Lower Risk of Depression - Neuroscience News Regular consumption of mushrooms may reduce a person's risk of developing depression, a new study reports.

People with long-COVID “brain fog” may be able to recover mental abilities that were dulled or stolen from them by the virus through an approach that has improved the effects of stroke, traumatic brain injury, and other post-viral disorders.

Scientists See Hope in New Therapy for COVID Brain Fog Patients A type of rehabilitation program that allows the brain to rewire itself has been successful in improving the lives of people with brain fog.

Sorry, we’re closed Friday and Saturday. We have rescheduled all appointments. 🤕

Researchers at the Laureate Institute for Brain Research (LIBR) in Tulsa, Okla., have identified an abnormal link between the autonomic and central nervous systems, specifically via communication between the heart and part of the brain’s frontal cortex, in women with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

Abnormal Heart-Brain Connection in Generalized Anxiety Disorder Identified - Neuroscience News Researchers identified an abnormal link between the autonomic and central nervous system via communication between the heart and parts of the prefrontal cortex in women with generalized anxiety disorder.

Men with hypers*xual disorder may have higher levels of oxytocin in their blood than men without the disorder, according to a small study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

Men With S*x Addiction May Have Elevated Levels of the Love Hormone Oxytocin - Neuroscience News Hypers*xual disorder, or s*x addiction, in males is associated with higher levels of oxytocin within the blood.

The brain has its own housekeeping service, a sophisticated mechanism that cleans up debris that is left over from cellular activity. But scientists have had a hard time figuring out exactly how the brain knows when to initiate this cellular "trash pickup."
A Yale-led team of scientists has identified a protein that is key to this process, which is known as autophagy.

How the brain knows when to take out the trash The brain has its own housekeeping service, a sophisticated mechanism that cleans up debris that is left over from cellular activity. But scientists have had a hard time figuring out exactly how the brain knows when to initiate this cellular "trash pickup."

Worldwide, there are currently 38 million people living with HIV, and an estimated 36 million have died of HIV-related diseases in the decades since HIV began circulating.

UCLA-led team refines ‘kick and kill’ strategy aimed at eliminating HIV-infected cells The study, which used mice, could point toward a method for clearing the virus from people who would otherwise depend on medication.