Eating Disorders: Tumour Necrosis Factor Alpha and Oxidative Stress as Maintaining Factors in the Evolution of Anorexia Nervosa.
Tumour necrosis factor alpha and oxidative stress as maintaining factors in the evolution of anorexia nervosa.
Filed under: Eating Disorders
Eat Weight Disord. 2012 Sep; 17(3): e194-9
Agnello E, Malfi G, Costantino AM, Massarenti P, Pugliese M, Fortunati N, Catalano MG, Palmo A
Aim of the study was to evaluate tumour necrosis factor ? (TNF- ?) axis and oxidative status in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) seeking a possible correlation with both nutritional status and evolution of the disease.Thirty-nine consecutive women with AN and an age-matched healthy control group were studied. Patients were 26±9 yr, with a body mass index (BMI) of 13.9±2 kg/m2. TNF-?, its receptors TNF-R55 and TNF-R75, and oxidative status markers (selenium, ascorbic/ dehydroascorbic acid, retinol, ?-tocopherol, selenium-dependent gluthatione peroxidase, reduced/oxidated gluthatione) were measured. A correlation with both nutritional indexes (body weight, BMI, albumin, prealbumin, transferrin, lymphocyte count) and disease duration was investigated. Pearson’s correlation and unpaired Student’s t-test were used to compare patients and controls.TNF-? and oxidative status markers were significantly higher in patients than controls and TNF-? was directly related to dehydroascorbic acid (p<0.05). Both TNF-R55 and TNF-R75 were higher in patients with duration of disease longer than one year as compared to controls and patients with shorter duration. Receptors inversely correlated with BMI (p<0.05 and p<0.01) and directly with disease duration (p<0.05). Inverse correlation between disease duration and BMI was present (p<0.01).The study showed activation of TNF-? axis and oxidative stress in AN patients, as well as correlation between the two systems. Due to the correlation between TNF receptors and both BMI and disease duration, a possible role of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the evolution of the eating disorder is suggested. HubMed – eating
Lifetime and recent DSM and ICD psychiatric comorbidity of inpatients engaging in different eating disorder behaviours.
Filed under: Eating Disorders
Eat Weight Disord. 2012 Sep; 17(3): e185-93
von Lojewski A, Boyd C, Abraham S, Russell J
Previous studies investigating psychiatric comorbidity in eating disorder (ED) patients compared groups according to ED diagnoses. The current paper compared groups according to ED behaviours: self-induced vomiting, objective binge eating, excessive exercising, and to body mass index (BMI, kg/m2) for selected psychiatric comorbidity using two systems: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) and International Classification of Diseases – Tenth Revision (ICD-10) diagnoses.Two hundred and twenty-six patients admitted for treatment in a specialised Eating Disorders Unit completed the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI). Lifetime and recent (12 months) psychiatric diagnoses were produced according to DSM-IV and ICD-10. Associations between presence of ED behaviours or BMI and psychiatric comorbidity were investigated.Eighty-eight percent of patients had a lifetime history (72% recent history) of at least one comorbid diagnosis (regardless of diagnostic system). Agreement between the systems was high for mood (affective) disorders and moderate for anxiety/somatoform disorders. Significantly more patients who vomit had lifetime and recent mood (affective) disorders (DSM-IV and ICD-10). Significantly more ‘vomiters’ had recent anxiety disorders (DSM-IV) and neurotic, stress-related and somatoform disorders (ICD-10) including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; DSM-IV and ICD-10). More patients with BMI >17.5 kg/m2 had lifetime and recent mood (affective) disorders and lifetime PTSD (DSM-IV and ICD-10). The results for ‘excessive exercisers’ varied and appeared inconsistent. There were no differences in any disorders for objective binge eaters.Patients who induce vomiting have more psychiatric comorbidity than ‘non-vomiters’, both lifetime and recent, and may benefit from diagnostic recognition as a separate group, for example ‘vomiting’ or ‘purging’ ED, who can then receive specialist treatment for their comorbidity and associated problems.
HubMed – eating
Perceptions of underweight images: Are women with anorexia nervosa perceived as attractive and healthy?
Filed under: Eating Disorders
Eat Weight Disord. 2012 Sep; 17(3): e178-84
Whisenhunt BL, Drab-Hudson DL, Stanek LR, Dock AJ, Allen BJ, Vincent RC, Levesque-Bristol C
The current study examined the impact of receiving information about a woman’s eating disorder status on perceptions of the woman’s health and attractiveness. A total of 99 females and 84 males viewed a photo of a model who had disclosed her diagnosis of anorexia nervosa. Participants were randomly divided into three groups: model (M) group (those who were informed that the photo showed a model), eating disorders (ED) group (those who were informed that the photo showed a woman with an eating disorder), and no description control (C) group. Male and female participants in the ED group rated the woman in the photo as less healthy than did participants in the M and C groups. However, there were no differences between groups for ratings of attractiveness or the participants’ desire to achieve a similar look (for females). Additionally, male participants rated the photo as less attractive than female participants had predicted. Finally, internalization of the thin ideal was a significant predictor of ratings of health and attractiveness of the woman in the photo.
HubMed – eating
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