Alimorad Farshchian (born April 2, 1962) is an Iranian-born American medical doctor, medical author, and philanthropist. He is the founding director of The Center for Regenerative Medicine, which opened in 2000 in order to pursue pioneering regimens in the treatment of

arthritis Arthritis is a general medical term used to describe a disorder that affects joints. Symptoms generally include joint pain and stiffness. Other symptoms may include redness, warmth, Joint effusion, swelling, and decreased range of motion of ...

and other

autoimmune disease An autoimmune disease is a condition that results from an anomalous response of the adaptive immune system, wherein it mistakenly targets and attacks healthy, functioning parts of the body as if they were foreign organisms. It is estimated tha ...

s. He coined the term "orthopedic regenerative medicine" to characterize his groundbreaking work. Since the center's creation, he has limited himself to non-surgical orthopedics and sports medicine. For the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, Farshchian served as a consulting Orthopedic Regenerative Medicine physician for the Team USA track-and-field team. He lives in Miami, Florida.

Education and early career

Farshchian earned his M.D. degree from

Spartan Health Sciences University Spartan Health Sciences University is a private, for-profit medical school located in Vieux Fort, Saint Lucia, in the Caribbean. Spartan confers upon its graduates the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree. Spartan graduates are eligible to practice me ...

St. Lucia Saint Lucia is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Saint Vincent ...

in 1987. The following year, he joined the research staff at the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, and the New York Research Foundation. He completed his internship at The

University of Tennessee College of Medicine The University of Tennessee College of Medicine is one of six graduate schools of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) in downtown Memphis. The oldest public medical school in Tennessee, the UT College of Medicine is a LCM ...

. In 1994, he relocated to

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and completed additional medical education in a program affiliated with the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. He began his private medical practice in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

in 1997. Two years later, he relocated to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

Career

In 2000, he founded The Center for Regenerative Medicine. He received Board certification in 1997. He is a member of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine. Host of The Arthritis Show, the first TV series to chronicle the experiences of patients with chronic arthritis and sports injuries (2011–present).

Innovative treatments for neurodegenerative diseases

Since July 2016, Farshchian has focused on developing innovative new treatments for major neurodegenerative diseases such as

dementia Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

and

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

. Parkinson' stem cells project is a non-invasive treatment he has developed uses the re-injection of

stem cell In multicellular organisms, stem cells are undifferentiated or partially differentiated cells that can change into various types of cells and proliferate indefinitely to produce more of the same stem cell. They are the earliest type of cell ...

s taken from the patient. Preliminary research indicates the therapy can possibly improve the debilitating symptoms caused by neurodegenerative diseases. Since 2011, Farshchian has integrated the use of tai chi, yoga and qigong into his treatment plans for patients with arthritis and sports injuries. His results have demonstrated the effectiveness of additional, non-traditional therapies for many patients.

Treatment of Michael Jackson

Farshchian is best known on a worldwide basis for his treatment of pop superstar

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

, from April 2001 until December 2003. He initially treated Jackson for an ankle injury that hampered his ability to perform. Still, after a close personal friendship developed, Farshchian attempted to intervene and cure Jackson of his addiction to

Demerol Pethidine, also known as meperidine and sold under the brand name Demerol among others, is a fully synthetic opioid pain medication of the phenylpiperidine class. Synthesized in 1938 as a potential anticholinergic agent by the German chemist Ot ...

. Farshchian convinced Jackson and his family that an implanted chip of the medication

Naltrexone Naltrexone, sold under the brand name Revia among others, is a medication primarily used to manage alcohol use or opioid use disorder by reducing cravings and feelings of euphoria associated with substance use disorder. It has also been ...

, which inhibits the effects of narcotics such as Demerol, could help the singer wean himself off Demerol. The treatment was successful. During his treatment, Jackson traveled multiple times to Miami, where he stayed in a private room created for him in Farshchian's garage. Farschian also visited Jackson and his family at the celebrity's

Neverland Ranch Sycamore Valley Ranch, formerly Neverland Ranch"Neverland Never More"
, by William Etling (author ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. Jackson's use of the general anesthetic

Propofol Propofol is the active component of an intravenous anesthetic formulation used for induction and maintenance of general anesthesia. It is chemically termed 2,6-diisopropylphenol. The formulation was approved under the brand name Diprivan. Nu ...

, administered by Dr.

Conrad Murray Conrad Robert Murray (born February 19, 1953) is a Grenadian-American former cardiologist and convicted felon. He was the personal physician of Michael Jackson on the day of his death in 2009. In 2011, Murray was convicted of involuntary mansl ...

, eventually led to his

death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

on June 25, 2009. After Jackson's death, the Sheriff of

Santa Maria, California Santa Maria (Spanish language, Spanish for "Mary, mother of Jesus, St. Mary") is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, it is approximately northwest o ...

, where Neverland Ranch was located, released to the public personal letters Farshchian had sent Jackson, pleading with him to fight his addiction to Demerol. One of the letters included a package that began Jackson detoxification therapy. In March 2003, Jackson and Farshchian zeroed in on the eight-story Victoria Medical Center, a health care condominium, located at 955 N.W. Third St., in the

Little Havana Little Havana () is a Neighborhoods in Miami, neighborhood of Miami, Florida, United States. Home to many Cuban exiles, as well as many immigrants from Central and South America, Little Havana is named after Havana, the Capital (political), ...

area of Miami as a potential location for a planned ventilator hospital project called Michael Jackson international children's hospital.

Heal the Earth through the Arts

In the summer of 2017, inspired by Michael Jackson's Philanthropic work with

Heal the World "Heal the World" is a song recorded by American singer Michael Jackson from his eighth studio album, '' Dangerous'' (1991). It was released on November 23, 1992, by Epic Records as the sixth single from the album. It was written and composed by ...

charity organization; Farshchian created a similar concept called "Heal the Earth through the Arts". This charity holds telethons live on Facebook; the telethons help to raise money for the homeless in Miami. Dr. Farshchian has stated in several interviews that this is his way of giving back to his community and continuing Michael Jackson's legacy.

Personal life

Farshchian was married from 1992 until 2015 to Maria Barba, a marketing executive and

Addy award Addy may refer to: *Addy (surname) *Addy, Washington, US, an unincorporated community *Addy Awards, advertising competition *Zack Addy, fictional character in the television series ''Bones'' *Addy Walker, a doll from the American Girl series *Adde ...

winner; together they had two children. In September 2016, Farshchian was engaged to singer and actress Elexis Ansley.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farshchian, Alimorad 1962 births Living people Physicians from Tehran Iranian emigrants to the United States 21st-century American physicians Physicians from Miami