The Effects of Pharmacological Treatment on Anorexia Nervosa Essay

The Effects of Pharmacological Treatment on Anorexia Nervosa The Characteristics of Anorexia Nervosa Individuals with anorexia nervosa are so successful at losing weight that they put their lives in a great deal of danger. Although dramatic weight loss is the most noticeable feature of the disease, anorexics also have an intense fear of obesity and pursue thinness with unparallelled ambition (Bruch, 1986). Anorexia is most common among females, with only about five percent of those suffering from the disease being male. It is also most likely to develop in young females as a result of societal pressures on women to remain slim. The DSM-4 criteria for anorexia nervosa contains the following factors : maintenance of a body weight which is less than 85% of that expected for normal weighing individuals, intense fear of becoming overweight, disturbance or distortion of how one views their own body weight or shape, and the absence of at least three consecutive menstrual cycles. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual specifies two types of anorexia : restricting type and binge-eating-purgin g type. The restricting type refers to those who do not regularly binge eat or purge, while the binge-eating-purging type refers to those who regularly engage in binge eating and purging behavior during an episode of anorexia. Anorexia nervosa is very difficult to treat due to the misconceptions in the minds of the afflicted individuals. While psychosocial treatments have been proven to be helpful, very little evidence exists to suggest that pharmacological treatment could be effective. The Effects of Antipsychotic Medication on the Treatment of Anorexia The first attempts to use medicine in the treatment of anorexia nervosa were per... .... Halmi, K. A., Eckert, E. D., & LaDu T. J. (1986). Anorexia nervosa: treatment efficacy of cyproheptadine and amitriptyline. Arch of General Psychiatry,43, 177-181. Lacey, J. H., & Crisp, A. H. (1980). Hunder, food intake and weight: the imact of clomipramine on a refeeding anorexia nervosa population. Postgraduate Medical Journal, 56, 79-85. Vandereycken, W. (1984). Neuroleptics in the short term treatment of anorexia nervosa: a double blind placebo controlled study with sulpiride. Bristish Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 288-292. Vandereycken, W., & Pierloot R. (1982). Pimozide combined with behavior therapy in the short term treatment of anorexia nervosa. Acto Psychiatry Scandinavia, 66, 445-450. Vigersky, R. A., & Loriaux, D. L. (1977). The effect of cyproheptadine in anorexia nervosa: a double blind trial, in Anorexia Nervosa. New York, Raven.