This week we are reposting a Q&A session with Dr. Miranda conducted by ABC News/Good Morning America several years ago. You may view the video features by ABC News on our news page. The questions and advice are evergreen since the same issues and questions come up for every new generation of parents with children on the “Autism Spectrum,” with developmental delays and with ADHD.
Autism Doctor Answers Viewers’ Questions
Neurologist Dr. Fernando Miranda takes a radically different approach to behavioral disorders. Using high-tech scanning imagery he looks inside people’s brains to diagnose and treat autism and attention deficit disorder.
After discussing his groundbreaking research on “Good Morning America,” we asked viewers to send in their questions for Miranda and received hundreds of emails. Answers to selected questions are below.
Viewers can also visit Bright Minds Institute for more information.
What are the signs one should look for in a child (who has been diagnosed with autism) to see if it could be something else like seizures? And can it be hereditary?
E., Whittier, Calif.
Dr. Miranda: Day dreaming, staring spells, abnormal awakenings at night, sleep terrors and family history of seizures.
I have a 5-year-old son with autism who had a 30 minute EEG when he was 4. We suspected silent seizures but in the 30 minutes none were noted. Is this enough time? Should we pursue more extensive testing? If so, what testing would you recommend?
A.M., Little Rock, Ark. Read more »
Tags: ADHD, answers, anti-seizure medicine, Aspergers Syndrome, Attentional deficit, autistic presentation, Bright Minds Institute, child, children, Dr. Miranda, eeg, head circumference, hearing problems, kids, medication regimen, mild autism, MRI, neurologist advice, non-verbal, parents, PDD, pediatric neurologist, Q&A session, questions, silent seizures
ADHD, Autism/ASD, Brain ailment diagnosis, Brain Disorders, Developmental Delays, Seizures | ken | 
February 7, 2012 3:26 pm | 
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Dear BMI parents and prospective parents,
Although Dr. Miranda currently sees some of your children for follow-up visits in Florida, we do not offer our Brain Electrical Activity Mapping (BEAM)/Digital EEG and Evoked Potentials (DEEP) Assessment technology there. We are very excited to let you know that we will soon be inaugurating the BEAM/DEEP Assessment system in our Vero Beach office this summer! Offering our full range of services in Florida will greatly aid those of you living in the South, Midwest and along the East Coast. We look forward to more quickly and easily testing your children’s baseline cognitive performance as well as ongoing progress improvements. Read more »
Tags: BEAM system, Brain Electrical Activity Mapping, Bright Minds Institute, DEEP Assessment, diagnosis, Digital EEG and Evoked Potentials, East Coast, Fernando Miranda, Florida office, service offerings, Spring 2012, Vero Beach office
ADHD, administrivia, Autism/ASD, Brain ailment diagnosis, Brain Disorders, Developmental Delays, Dyslexia, Healthcare in the US, Seizures | ken | February 6, 2012 8:59 am | Comments (0)
By Fernando G. Miranda, M.D.
FAAN, Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology
Medical Director, Bright Minds Institute
INTRODUCTION:
The purpose of this paper is to present an objective view, governed by rigor and clarity, of so-called Neurofeedback, EEG Biofeedback, and/or Neurotherapy.
This method of treatment has been used extensively to try to treat children and adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder [1] (ADHD,) traumatic brain injury, schizophrenia, and anxiety disorders.
As a practicing Neurologist, with expertise and certification in electroencephalography and Cognitive-Behavioral Neurology, I have had opportunity to observe objectively the reported advantages of this technique.
I have been able in Los Angeles, to observe closely, two large institutions whose business is to teach, sell equipment, and clinically utilize EEG biofeedback.
I have had the opportunity of observing the clinical skills of their Practitioners as well as the overall expertise of the Program Directors. Read more »
Hear Dr. Miranda and other experts speak about autism and AD/HD next Saturday, November 12th in South San Francisco at the Second Annual Bay Area Autism and AD/HD Conference.
Catch early bird rates before November 7th!
“The Rationale of Hyperbaric Chambers in Treating Autistic Syndrome and Cerebral Palsy Patients”
by Fernando Miranda, M.D., F.A.A.N.
As the diagnosis of Autistic Syndrome (ASD) grows, there are many therapies utilized in this field that had not been scientifically assessed and may potentially have negative effects on the patient.
One of these is hyperbaric oxygen treatment.
Through my years of dealing with patients with the diagnosis of ASD and Cerebral Palsy, I have found families investing in this expensive treatment and occasionally buying the equipment so that they can perform the treatment at home with an increased frequency.
It is clear from the medical literature that hyperbaric oxygen therapy has a significant therapeutic effect in infections of limbs, in which anaerobic bacteria is found. Specifically, in gangrene.
It also has a significant role in the treatment of diving encephalopathies (ie, the famous “bends” -Ed), decompression syndromes, for which hyperbaric oxygen is of incredible value as a therapeutic tool.
However, to my knowledge, there is no peer-reviewed journal in the Neurosciences that has noted the value in any situation for ASD or CP. Read more »
Tags: alt. therapies, asd, autism, cerebral palsy, efficacy, encephalopathy, hyperbaric oxygen, Neuropathology, risks, stroke, therapy, treatment
"Alternative" Therapies, Autism/ASD, BMI Research, Brain Disorder Treatments, Healthcare in the US, Seizures | ken | October 5, 2011 2:13 pm | Comments (2)
“How to Modify Aggressive Behavior in Children with Autism”
by Fernando Miranda, M.D., F.A.A.N.
A frequent question from both parents and teachers is how do you discipline children that behave badly — and by that I mean become physically aggressive or start having tantrums and throwing things around physically.
The first thing to remember is the fact that patients with Autism Syndromes have a brain disorder. This brain disorder is particularly manifested by abnormal neuropathology. These children have hyperfunctioning of local neural microcircuits in the brain which produce hyperreactivity and hyperplasticity.
If we were to stay with those two concepts, hyperreactivity meaning reacting more to any sensory stimulation, most children will hyperreact to auditory stimulation but it is also on occasions visual stimulation as well. Some of them will react to sensory stimulation such as touching or changes in temperature.
What this causes is an overabundance of stimuli in an individual who cannot quickly adapt and react appropriately.
The other piece of the puzzle that most people do not recognize is that all humans are genetically determined to have patterns of reactivity to very basic specific stimulus. We have a reactivity to situations that produce anger, fear, or threat as examples, and most of our instinctive reaction is to protect ourselves physically. Within those patterns of reaction, aggression is a frequent one.
These hyperfunctioning microcircuits in many of occasions become autonomous and “memory trapped” (similar to “muscle memory” through repetition) leading to hyperperception, hyperattention, and hyperemotionality. Read more »
First post!
We’re live. Welcome to the Bright Minds blog.
Over the coming months check here for expert analysis and opinion from Bright Minds Institute’s Medical Director Fernando Miranda M.D. as well as from our other staff. The photo above is of our San Francisco office, facing south on Sansome Street.
Have questions? Start posting them!
:: Ken, Patient Advocate
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