The Experience of Affective Touch in Anorexia Nervosa
Anorexia NervosaThe aim of the present research will be to verify if the pleasantness of affective touch is comparable between women with AN and healthy women while measuring the level of social anhedonia and the lifespan experience of affective touch.
Amino Acids in Patients With Anorexia Nervosa: Double-blind Randomized Study Versus Placebo
Anorexia NervosaAmino acids (AAs) are crucial for protein synthesis, in influencing nutritional status, as sources of vital elements (e.g., nucleotides, neurotransmitters) and as signal molecules for the modulation of gene expression and epigenetic mechanisms. Data on the role of amino acids in underweight patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) are unknown. This study aims to evaluate whether a blend of essential amino acids (EAA) could influence the change in lean body mass (LBM) in patients with AN during weight restoration, treated with intensive inpatient enhanced cognitive behavior therapy (CBT-E). A total of 92 patients will be randomized to EAA supplementation or placebo supplementation upon admission to inpatient treatment. LBM, but also body weight, specific and general psychopathology, impairment assessment will be assessed at baseline and after 13 weeks of treatment.
Feasibility of the ROADE Program
Bulimia NervosaAnorexia Nervosa2 moreOccupational therapy is uniquely poised to help address chronic Eating Disorders (EDs) because of our holistic approach to client care. The complex and serious nature of EDs spans so many areas of life and wellbeing, it requires an intervention strategy that addresses the whole person across mental, physical, social, and spiritual realms. Unfortunately, specialized care for EDs can be difficult to find - especially for those not sick enough to be admitted to an inpatient facility but who are still struggling to thrive in daily life. For example, in New Mexico there is only one inpatient treatment center for EDs and no specialized outpatient services. This leaves many people suffering from EDs without options for care because they are not yet sick enough. There is a need for novel interventions in this setting that go beyond the traditional weight and food-focused medical interventions and seek to help empower individuals, work around challenges, and live their lives to the fullest. To meet this need in our community, the study team is developing a preliminary outpatient treatment program. The ROADE (Restorative Occupational Approaches for Disordered Eating) Program is an 8-week, structured, multimodal intervention seeking to reduce psychosocial symptoms and improve self-management skills for disordered eating. The intervention strategies range from: (1) wellness activities like mindfulness meditation to improve interoception, self-acceptance, and as a self-guided coping tool (2) adaptation of health management and self-care occupations to improve daily functioning while navigating ongoing disordered eating symptoms and (3) light exercise like Yoga and lymphatic drainage exercises to reconnect in a positive way with the body, improve digestion, promote relaxation, and reduce muscle tension. The current research investigates the feasibility and acceptability of this intervention while testing preliminary effects on eating disorder symptoms.
The Role of Short-chain Fatty Acids in Malnutrition on Stress, Eating Behavior, and Nutritional...
Anorexia NervosaThis clinical trial aims to test the psychobiological effects of certain substances produced by gut bacteria, known as short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), in people with anorexia nervosa.
Effects of Adapated Physical Activity Program on Kynurenin Metabolism During Refeeding in Anorexia...
Anorexia NervosaPhysical hyperactivity is often associated to anorexia nervosa (AN). Data suggest common central pathways between hyperactivity and anorexia. Maintaining adapted physical activity (APA) during refeeding in AN is controversial. Many studies suggest beneficits of APA in AN on body composition (increase fat free mass and better distribution of fat mass), mood regulation, bone metabolism. We recently reported benefits of maintaining physical activity during refeeding in a mice model of anorexia (activity-based anorexia model). These benefits involved the tryptophan-kynurenin pathway. Thus, we aim in the APANOR study to assess effects of APA during refeeding in AN on kynurenin metabolism.
Treatment of Cancer-associated Anorexia Using Megestrol Acetate Concentrated Suspension
AnorexiaCachexia1 moreTo compare the effect of megestrol acetate concentrated suspension and placebo on caloric intake in patients with cancer-associated anorexia.
The ITA Model of Integrated Treatment of Eating Disorders
Eating DisordersAnorexia Nervosa4 moreThis is a naturalistic study implementing a routine assessment to monitor the evolution of the patients with eating disorders being treated in various centers of "ITA salud mental" in Spain.
Whole Gut Microbiome Sequencing in Patients With Anorexia Nervosa
Anorexia NervosaBackground. Anorexia nervosa (AN) still carries the highest fatality rate of any psychiatric disease, and less than half of the patients recover, completely refractory to any treatment. The etiology remains unknown and evidence for treatment is lacking. The intestinal microbiota and its microbiome provide humans with additional gene products which may be regarded as an organ, which contributes to multiple host metabolic pathways. Recent advances in microbial DNA sequencing technologies have resulted in metagenomic DNA analysis of whole ecosystems such as the human gut. Altered intestinal microbiota has been related to obesity and insulin resistance. Hypothetically, the intestinal microbiota could play a role in the generation and/or maintenance of the emaciation in AN. Aim. The aim of the present study is to investigate whether gut microbiota is altered in patients with AN. Subjects and methods. A cross sectional study of the gut microbiome profiles in 75 clinical, psychometric and biochemical well characterized treatment seeking females with AN. The microbiome profiles are compared with 75 age- matched healthy Danish control subjects. Perspectives. Clarifying whether the intestinal flora is implicated in the susceptibility to or maintenance of AN may provide the basis for development of new highly required treatments.
Evaluation of the Efficacy and Safety of Olanzapine for Anorexia Nervosa in Children and Adolescents...
Eating DisorderThe purpose of this trial is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the atypical antipsychotic, olanzapine, for the treatment of youth suffering from Anorexia Nervosa (AN). Adolescent males and females between the ages of 11 and 17 years who are being treated by a physician on the Eating Disorder team at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario will be invited to join the study if they have been diagnosed with AN or Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS), and if they weigh less than or equal to 85% of their ideal body weight. Those who meet inclusion and not exclusion criteria, and consent to participating in the trial will be offered adjunctive treatment with olanzapine. Those who agree to take olanzapine will belong to the olanzapine group, and those who decline will belong to the comparison group. Olanzapine doses will be in keeping with the investigators current clinical practice, with flex doses ranging from 1.25 mg to 10.0 mg daily (the majority of patients are treated with 2.5 mg or 5.0 mg at bedtime); dose adjustments made based on individual need and tolerability. Participants will remain in the study for 12 weeks. Those who initially decline olanzapine treatment may change their minds and take olanzapine up until week 9 of the trial. It is hypothesized that those children and adolescents who choose to take olanzapine at entry into the trial will be more motivated to recover and more compliant with treatment. Compared to those who do not receive medication, it is expected that these adolescents will demonstrate reduced disordered eating attitudes and behaviours, as well as an increased rate of weight gain. Finally, it is predicted that the rates of discontinuation and the adverse effects of olanzapine will be minor given the relatively low dose (as compared to treatment for patients with schizophrenia), slow titration, and short-term use of olanzapine the investigators will be using. By comparing the well-being and outcome of patients in the two groups, the investigators hope to begin to answer the question of whether olanzapine does or does not lead to improved clinical outcome for patients with severe eating disorders such as AN or EDNOS, and the question of whether the benefits of using the medication outweigh the risks.
Haelan and Nutrition in Cancer Patients
AnorexiaWeight Loss1 morePrimary: To determine if treatment with Haelan (fermented soy product) can decrease the severity of poor appetite measured using a visual analog scale (VAS) of 0 to 100 mm (0 mm = best, 100 mm = worst) at week 4 +/- 5 days. To determine if treatment with Haelan can decrease the severity of nausea, fatigue, and improve patients' overall sense of well being measured using a VAS of 0 to 100 mm (0 mm = best, 100 mm = worst) at week 4 +/- 5 days. To determine if treatment with Haelan can increase patient's calorie intake, albumin, pre-albumin, anthropometric measure, lean body mass (measured by bio-impedence analysis), and weight at week 4+/- 5 days. To determine if treatment with Haelan can decrease patient's Functional assessment of anorexia/cachexia therapy subscales or (FAACT) and the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy with fatigue subscales (FACIT-F) at week 4+/- 5 days. To assess the feasibility of accrual, and adherence to the Haelan consumption. Secondary: Determine the plasma isoflavone activity, 12-MTA and 13-MTA of these patients. Correlate the biologic modulation of peripheral blood lymphocyte NF-kB by Haelan with primary outcome in these patients. To determine if treatment with Haelan can increase patient's functional status at week 4+/- 5 days.