January 06, 2017
This study examines adult patients with severe, life-threatening anorexia nervosa who were admitted to an inpatient, medical stabilization unit between October 1, 2008 and December 31, 2014. Specifically, the study compares anorexia nervosa, binge purge subtype (AN-BP) and anorexia nervosa, restricting subtype (AN-R) on admission measures, hospital course, and outcomes.
Of the 232 patients, 46% (N = 108) had AN-BP. Patients with AN-R manifested a higher frequency of underweight-mediated medical complications, including bone marrow dysfunction, hepatic dysfunction, and hypoglycemia. Understanding the pathophysiologic differences between severe AN-R and AN-BP is essential to understanding the abnormalities seen on clinical presentation, guiding appropriate clinical treatment, and predicting medical complications during refeeding.
Read the full article in Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment and Prevention.
- Rylander M, Brinton JT, Sabel AL, Mehler PS, Gaudiani JL. A comparison of the metabolic complications and hospital course of severe anorexia nervosa by binge-purge and restricting subtypes. Eat Disord 2017 Jan 6;1–13. DOI: 10.1080/10640266.2016.1269555
