5 Things to Know About Eating Disorders

Anorexia nervosa is often complicated by devastating medical problems and may result in death. Although studies suggest a multifactorial cause for the disorder, treatment trials have yet to provide clinical guidance about how best to approach anorexia nervosa. However, studies that have found that for adolescents who have short-duration anorexia nervosa, a specific form of family-based treatment (FBT) shows promise.Source: Family therapy for adolescents with anorexia nervosa: A brief review of family-based treatment

Eating disorders (EDs)-anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa in particular-remain among the most perplexing psychiatric disorders. The lifetime prevalence of an ED among youths (aged 12 to 18 years) in the US is estimated to be more than 6%.Despite these high numbers and the associated morbidity and mortality of these disorders, few randomized clinical trials, such as psychotherapy, pharmacotherapy, or combined, have been conducted on EDs in adolescents. As a consequence, relatively little is known about efficacious treatments for this patient population. Notwithstanding sparse treatment data, recent efforts are beginning to provide clinicians with some clear treatment guidelines.Source: The treatment of adolescent eating disorders

There are a considerable number of aging patients with an ED who have only partial symptom remission or who remain ill for many decades.Moreover, although quite infrequent, there are cases of “tardive” EDs that manifest in middle age or late in life.

Patients with EDs are known to have high relapse rates. Resistance in EDs is common and can help explain why treatments often fail and why patients drop out. In general, resistance can refer to the conscious and unconscious factors that prevent a patient from engaging fully in the treatment process. Importantly, patient resistance is not uniform across the different ED diagnoses, and how it is addressed also depends on the age of the individual. Source: Patient Resistance in eating disorders

Findings from recent studies suggest how individuals with anorexia nervosa can severely restrict their caloric intake for years. In contrast, most people have difficulty adhering to a diet for a long period of time, and experience a high rate of recidivism after they lose weight. How are individuals with anorexia able to ignore signals regarding hunger that otherwise motivate eating, even when they are severely emaciated? Understanding such questions may lead to the development of more effective treatments targeted at the underlying mechanisms of the disorder.