What types of patients does a neurologist treat?
As a board-certified neurologist (American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology), Dr. Barratt has expertise in treating patients with the following conditions of the nervous system:
Stroke
Seizures/Epilepsy
Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
Neuropathy
Myasthenia gravis
Headache
Back pain
Neck pain
Multiple sclerosis
Dementia
Alzheimer’s disease
Biologically, Alzheimer's disease is defined by the presence of amyloid beta plaques and tau neurofibrillary tangles.
Amyloid beta plaques form because a normal cellular protein (amyloid precursor protein) breaks down into toxic forms. The amyloid beta clumps into plaques outside of the cells and interferes with neuron-to-neuron communication. Amyloid beta can also enter neurons and interfere with normal cellular processes.
Tau is a protein normally present within neurons. In Alzheimer’s disease, Tau loses its ability to stabilize the structure of the neurons and forms neurofibrillary tangles. This leads to neuronal cell death.