Brain Scans—Fact or Folly?

As a parent, I know how desperate we are to help our struggling children. As an advocate for families living with mood disorders, I also know that this desperation can make us vulnerable to costly and unproven treatments and technologies.

Many parents have spent thousands of dollars on brain scans to diagnose or identify treatment options for their child’s bipolar disorder. Time and time again, CABF parents report about a clinic that is doing ”cutting edge” research.

I want to set the record straight: At this time, brain scans cannot be used to diagnose bipolar disorder. No ifs, ands or buts. Neither fMRIs, CTs, EEG, PET, MEG, NIRS nor SPECT scans are useful at this time in diagnosis or treatment of an individual who may be suffering from bipolar disorder. I hear this debate so often that I have repeatedly brought it to experts and researchers. I always receive the same reaction—a dumbfounded look and questioning eye. (“Is she serious? Do many parents really think there is validity to this misnomer?”)

This issue has recently come up again, and so I asked two of CABF’s Scientific Advisory Council members who are experts in brain imaging for their take on the technology:

“Families often ask if they can diagnose their child with a brain scan, and I say no--or at least not yet! … Scores of parents have been disappointed because they saw that the doctors who scanned their children simply recommended generic treatments with no differences based on the patients themselves. While I cannot comment firsthand on such happenings, it troubles me to think of such a possibility, as we know the state of the field and limitations of techniques and interpretations at the current time.

“I would advise families to participate in a scientific research study for a good cause where possible, rather than paying for expensive brain scans thinking they can get an answer.”  

Mani Pavuluri, MD PhD
Professor and Director, Pediatric Brain Research and Intervention Center  
Berger-Colbeth Endowed Chair in Child Psychiatry
University of Illinois at Chicago


“At this point, brain scans are useful to compare groups of patients with bipolar disorder to groups of healthy individuals. Imaging or brain scans cannot be used to diagnose a specific individual with bipolar disorder. Brain scans, such as an MRI, may be useful in an individual to rule out other potential causes of the symptoms the patient is experiencing. In the future, brain scans will likely be useful to identify who will be most likely to respond to a particular treatment, to identify who will develop bipolar disorder in individuals at risk for developing this illness, and to diagnose individuals with bipolar disorder; but not presently.”

Melissa DelBello, M.D., M.S.
Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics
Vice Chair of Clinical Research
Co-Director, Division of Bipolar Disorders Research
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine


The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry also advises caution:

“While some media reports have described that bipolar disorder can be diagnosed using brain imaging scans (such as SPECT scans), research does not currently support these claims. Currently, no biological test can determine if your child has bipolar disorder—not blood tests, genetic testing, or brain scans.”

I wish I could tell you differently. I wish that we had better diagnostic and treatment tools for our children. CABF shares with you the most credible information that we do have. Together, we can join forces to advocate for more research for our children. When a cutting edge treatment or diagnostic tool is validated, you can look to CABF to share this groundbreaking news with you.

In the meantime, help us support the hundreds of new families who come to CABF each month. Share your story on our Forums. Recommend a doctor who has helped your child. Rate your doctor on our Find a Professional Directory. Make a donation so that we have the continued resources to share the latest updates with you. 

(For a nice summary of brain scans, check out this article by our friends at PsychCentral http://psychcentral.com/lib/2007/types-of-brain-imaging-techniques/).

CABF welcomes Jessica Gimeno to our staff. She will be responsible for producing the Flipswitch podcast and blog, helping with social networking and assisting with the parent support programs. Jessica is a 2006 Northwestern cum laude graduate and an award-winning speaker. Since graduation, Jessica has worked as a high school debate team coach, an educational consultant for high school students, and has written a book entitled Climbing Out of the Downward Spiral: How to Survive Depression and Finish College.*  Jessica possesses broad knowledge about mood disorders, is experienced in advocating for teens with depression and possesses incredible enthusiasm.

You can listen to the podcasts here. Have an idea for Jessica?  Email her at jgimeno@bpkids.org. Please join us in welcoming Jessica to the CABF team!

*Book currently unpublished; Jessica is in the process of finding a publisher.

Recently, a generous board member, Susan Madian, presented the CABF community with a challenge.  She offered to match every gift made to CABF during the month of March up to a total of $50,000.   She did this to show her appreciation for the support and help that she received from CABF at a time when her family was really struggling.  Susan wanted to ensure that the support she received would continue to be available to everyone who needs it.  

I’m happy to report that as a result of your generosity CABF received the full $50,000.  

Thank you so much to everyone who helped meet Susan’s challenge.  We receive almost 90% of our funding from individuals such as you. Your gifts make it possible for us to continue providing the support and resources you need.  If you haven’t made a gift to CABF recently, please renew your support of CABF today.