I am going to cover ailments and health issues relevant to arowanas in this page as there is a wealth of information on general health problems on the web

Appetite
For some unknown reason arowanas may go through a phase of not eating for no reason at all, It may be a day or two or even a month. When this happens, maintain good water quality and try to feed crickets and mealworms as they can never resist them until their normal appetite returns.

Swim Bladder Problem
Fish may swim at an angle with either their head up or head down. Reasons may be trauma or punctured swim bladder during the insertion of the microchip. Very little can be done when a fish has a SBP. There are some medication for correcting the problem but I have never come across someone who has successfully used it. Some hobbyists in Singapore have fed aros with food injected with medication and has claimed success but I am a bit sceptical about it. Fish with SBP go on to reach adult fishes without any other problems.

Gill Curl
Gill Curl is said to be caused by poor water quality and inadequate sized tank. When gill curl is first detected in the aro it can be easiy cured as the tissues are still soft, through regular water changes and possibly a bigger sized tank. However when the gill curl has hardened the only way to get rid of it is surgically when the fish is anaethesised for a few minutes and the curled gills cut away with sterile scissors.

Drop Eye
Drop eye is caused by two factors- the first reason is the type of food fed to the fish. Feeding food with a fatty content e.g. pork ,may cause a build up of fat behind the eye socket and cause it to bulge and look down.Secondly arowanas are surface feeders and tend to look up most of the time. Avoid feeding food that will sink immediately as over a period of time, their eyes will adjust to looking for food at the bottom of the tank and affect the normal orientation of the eye. Some hobbyists claim DE can be cured by covering the tank on all 4 sides, thus forcing the fish to look upwards, or putting the fish in a fibreglass tank . the success rate is limited and prevention is better than cure.

Skittishness
Young arowanas tend to be skittish and nervous when approached by human traffic and may knock themselves and jump within the tank so it is important to keep the tank covered securely at all times. Fortunately, they tend to settle down and accept humans as they get bigger and in some cases even feed from the hand. Subdued lighting and the addition of Black Water Extract has been said to help but realistically, getting used to people approaching the tank over a period of time is the only way the fish will get used to traffic.

Broken barbels
Arowanas may suffer from broken barbels through self sustained injury or clashes with other fish. Needless to say,  arowanaswithout complete long barbels are not "complete". Normally broken barbels will grow back quite quickly depending on where they have snapped off and the age of the fish. Young fish have a greater chance to restore their barbels to their former glory in the shortest possible time, whereas older fish take time and may not regenerate their barbels at all. Barbels broken halfway will self heal in time but those that have broken off at the base may not grow at all and will need stimulation by pricking with a needle under anaesthesia to encourage growth cells to generate another barbel.

Dropped scales and torn fins
These minor injuries usually heal up on their own accord in no time, with torn fins having a faster repair rate. Sometimes these injuries are inevitable especially if you keep them with other fish and is not considered a major problem. Fins may come off in big chunks if the fish is not handled correctly especially in transportation. It is alarming to see major torn fins but this can be avoided by using the "bag in the water" method to catch and transfer fish. Never let arowanas struggle in a net out of water. i have personally suffered torn caudal fins as a result. Addition of Melafix often helps.

Spinal Curvature
This condition, although rare, are seen in younger fish as a result of malnutrition and injury. Inadequate food intake for whatever reason will contribute to the normal development of the spine and result in an "S" shaped body. Once it develops. it is difficult to treat and a full recovery is virtually impossible. However if a decent environment is provided it will rarely lead to the fish's death