Anorexia Nervosa
- Description
- Characterized by excessive weight loss
- Self-starvation
- Preoccupation with foods, progressing restrictions against whole categories of food
- Anxiety about gaining weight or being “fat”
- Denial of hunger
- Consistent excuses to avoid mealtimes
- Excessive, rigid exercise regimen to “burn off” calories
- Withdrawal from usual friends
What to look for?
- Rapid loss of weight
- Change in eating habits
- Withdrawal from friends or social gatherings
- Hair loss or dry skin
- Extreme concern about appearance or dieting
Presents with
- Superior Mesenteric Artery Syndrome
- Major Depressive Disorder
- Schizophrenia
Anorexia Treatment
- Three main phases:
- Restoring weight lost
- Treating psychological issues, such as:
- Distortion of body image, low self-esteem, and interpersonal conflicts.
- Achieving long-term remission and rehabilitation.
- Early diagnosis and treatment increases the treatment success rate.
Hospitalization (Inpatient)
- Extreme cases are admitted for severe weight loss
- Feeding plans are used for nutritional needs
- Intravenous feeding is used for patients who refuse to eat or the amount of weight loss has become life threatening
Weight Gain
- Immediate goal in treatment
- Physician strictly sets the rate of weight gain
- Usually 1 to 2 pounds per week
- In the beginning 1,500 calories are given per day
- Calorie intake may eventually go up to 3,500 calories per day
Nutritional Therapy
- Dietitian is often used to develop strategies for planning meals and to educate the patient and parents
- Useful for achieving long-term remission