Major Depression Facility Los Angeles CA

About Dr. Deirmenjian

Dr. Deirmenjian believes that each patient is unique and offers a comprehensive approach
in his treatment. His care of patients is customized to meet each individual's needs.
Realizing that all patients respond differently to treatment, he tailors their care based on a
variety of treatment options. Consequently, his multi-modal approach promotes a healthy
lifestyle incorporating psychotherapy, diet and exercise, TMS therapy, and medication
management.
Dr. Deirmenjian integrates all aspects of
positive mental health in his approach to
patients by coordinating their care with
psychotherapists, dieticians, primary care
providers, and other medical professionals.
His staff is highly-trained and puts the
patient first while providing one-on-one
nursing care. Dr. Deirmenjian is the first
psychiatrist in Beverly Hills to offer the
cutting-edge approach to the treatment of depression:TMS therapy, which was recently
chosen by CNN as being one of the top ten health innovations of 2009.
Dr. John Deirmenjian is a graduate of Pomona College and the University of California, San
Diego School of Medicine, where he graduated with honors in psychiatry.
Prior to his psychiatry residency at UCLA, he attended the University of North Carolina,
Chapel Hill School of Medicine for a general surgery intership.Dr. Deirmenjian completed a
second year of surgery residency and two years of a urology residency at the University of
California, San Francisco School of Medicine. After finishing his psychiatry residency at the
UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute, where he also served as chief resident of geriatric
psychiatry, Dr. Deirmenjian completed a forensic psychiatry fellowship at the Case Western
Reserve University School of Medicine.

Dr. Deirmenjian has extensive experience in all areas of psychiatry. He has been an
Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine,
where he has taught Psychopharmacology to second year medical students and has been an
attending psychiatrist in the UCLA Mood Disorders Clinic.
Dr. Deirmenjian has worked as an attending psychiatrist in the state hospital setting, as
well as having been a medical director of two inpatient psychiatric units. He has been a
consulting psychiatrist to six hospitals. His forensic psychiatric practice has included high
profile cases in Los Angeles, as well as media appearances on CNN's Larry King Live and
Anderson Cooper.
His current practice as a psychopharmacologist focuses on adult outpatient treatment of
mood disorders, Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder, women's psychiatric disorders
across the reproductive cycle, and geriatric psychiatry.

Premier TMS Centers of Los Angeles

The Premier TMS Centers, located in Beverly Hills, Glendale, and Long Beach, are the area's
first and most trusted provider of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS). This cutting
edge, FDA cleared depression treatment is a non-invasive procedure that does not require
sedation, drugs, and has minimal to no side-effects.
By utilizing MRI-strength magnetic pulses directed at specific locations of the brain, we are
able to stimulate areas known to affect mood and emotional regulation.
As a regional leader in successfully treating patients, the Premier TMS Centers of Los
Angeles, headed by Dr. John Deirmenjian, provide excellent and compassionate care. Over
the course of treatment, we aim to stimulate the brain in a way that can lead to
improvements in mood, energy, productivity, and overall happiness.
Utilizing an FDA cleared, out-patient procedure, we accept patients at any one of our three
convenient locations in Beverly Hills, Glendale, and Long Beach.

About Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

TMS Therapy is a new treatment cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
for patients suffering from depression who have not achieved satisfactory improvement
from prior antidepressant treatment.
TMS Therapy is performed in a psychiatric office, under the supervision of Dr. Deirmenjian,
using a medical device called the NeuroStar TMS Therapy system. The typical initial
treatment course consists of at least 5 treatments per week over a 4-6 week period, for an
average of 20-30 total treatments. Each treatment session lasts approximately 40 minutes.

Why TMS?

TMS is non-invasive, meaning that it does not

involve surgery, anesthesia, or sedation. In
fact, the patient remains awake and alert
during the treatment.
TMS is non-systemic, meaning that, unlike
medication, it is a treatment focused on a
particular brain area and does not circulate in
the blood stream throughout the body.

About Depression

Depression results in a persistent state of sadness or a loss of the ability to experience

pleasure. Those experiencing depression often lose interest in everyday activities or
hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Symptoms may include:
Significant weight loss (when not
dieting) or weight gain (a change of
more than five percent of body weight
in a month)
Significant increase or decrease in
appetite
Excessive sleepiness or insomnia
Agitation and restlessness
Fatigue or loss of energy nearly every
day
Feelings of worthlessness or excessive
and inappropriate guilt nearly every day
Diminished ability to think, concentrate, or make decisions
Recurrent thoughts of death or suicide
While the exact cause of depression is not known, it is known that depression is
characterized by an imbalance of the brain's chemical messengers (or neurotransmitters),
as well as decreased activity in the frontal lobes of the brain. Depression is most often
treated with antidepressant medications. It is believed that antidepressant medications
work by increasing the levels of these neurotransmitters. However, antidepressants may
not be right for everyone!

TMS Therapy for Depression

For decades, researchers have sought safe and effective treatments for depression. While it
is often treated with antidepressant medications, many patients experience troubling side
effects like weight gain, nausea, dry mouth, decreased sex-drive, or a lack of energy. In
addition, millions of patients do not see any benefit from standard courses of

antidepressant medications. However, there are other options! TMS Therapy has been
shown to work in people who do not receive benefit from medications or cannot tolerate
the side effects caused by them.

Treating Depression

Depression symptoms are most often treated with antidepressant medications. It is

believed that antidepressant medications work by increasing the levels of
neurotransmitters in the brain. These changes have a positive effect on mood and reducing
feelings of depression and anxiety. Unfortunately, treating major depression is sometimes
more complicated and requires more than antidepressants.
Although antidepressants can be effective for many patients, they do not work for
everybody. This condition is sometimes referred to as treatment resistant depression, or
drug resistant depression. Although not a scientific term, treatment resistant depression is
real and debilitating for those dealing with it.
Additionally, since antidepressant medications are typically taken by mouth, they circulate
in the bloodstream throughout the body, often resulting in unwanted side effects such as
weight gain, sexual problems, upset stomach, sleepiness, and dry mouth. More than 4
million patients do not receive adequate benefit from antidepressants and/or cannot
tolerate the side effects caused by them.
For these patients, alternative treatments for depression are available. These depression
therapies have proven to work in some people that do not receive benefit from
antidepressants and/or cannot tolerate the side effects caused by them. These treatments
include: transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and
vagus nerve stimulation (VNS).
Recent research with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has offered a new
alternative treatment for depression. Focused stimulation of targeted regions in the brain
with pulsed magnetic fields may have a positive effect on the brain's neurotransmitters
levels. Treating depression with transcranial magnetic stimulation, also referred to as TMS
Therapy, provides an alternative depression treatment for those who have not benefitted
from prior antidepressant medication.

For more information please visit

http://www.premiertmslosangeles.com