Active clinical trials for "Anorexia"

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is characterized by a reduced drive to pursue rewarding experiences and stimuli. Food consumption - which is almost universally experienced as pleasurable - is not described as rewarding by those with AN. This is thought to be underpinned by abnormalities around reward learning. However, the most fundamental question relating to reward in AN - whether those with AN may learn positive associations - remains unaddressed. In this study, the investigators will identify the patterns of how those with AN acquire positive associations, how they diminish, and their relationships to physiology (heart rate and pupil responses) and brain activation. In assessing the robustness of this learning, the investigators will investigate the extent to which this association is reactivated after 24 hours, and the extent to which a memory prompt will help reinstate this previously learned positive association. This project will allow for important advances in our understanding of the neurobiology of AN. The investigators will first identify if, and how, those with AN come to learn positive associations to cues, and secondly, the extent to which learned positive associations remain over time. Moreover, the investigators will use machine learning to ascertain whether reward learning can be predicted by physiological and neural biomarkers.

The study examines potential adverse side effects on family functioning and parent-child relationships of standard treatment family-based therapy (FBT) for anorexia nervosa (AN) in children and youths.

This Phase 2, open-label, multi-site study will explore the safety and feasibility of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted psychotherapy and adjunctive caregiver involvement in the treatment of 18 participants with eating disorders. The study will enroll 12 participants with anorexia nervosa restricting-type (AN-R) and six participants with binge eating disorder (BED). A supportive caregiver, such as a parent or partner, for each participant will also be recruited to participate in the study and receive non-drug psychotherapy support. The study will consist of Preparatory Sessions, Experimental Sessions of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy, as well as Individual and Dyadic Integrative Sessions. A flexible dose of MDMA will be given during Experimental Sessions, ranging from 80 to 120 mg with a supplemental half-dose of 40 or 60 mg 1.5 to 2 hours later, respectively, unless contraindicated. The primary outcome measure is the change in Eating Disorder Examination (EDE) results from Baseline to Visit 16 (Study Termination).

Anorexia nervosa (AN) and atypical AN (AAN) are severe psychiatric illnesses associated with high disease burden including high treatment costs and excessive mortality rates. Primary characteristics of AN and AAN are food restriction, associated fear of weight gain, and a disturbance in how one's body weight or shape is experienced.The underlying neural mechanisms for the core illness behaviors of food restriction and body size overestimation in anorexia nervosa and atypical anorexia nervosa are not well understood. This project will use neurofeedback and advanced psychophysical methods to assess and moderate the neural and behavioral responses to stress and relate those results to the naturalistic environment. The results will guide the development of novel interventions.

Recent studies suggest that patients with an history of trauma may represent a specific subtype of anorexia nervosa (AM) underlined by specific neurobiological and psychopathological mechanisms. Thus, AM-T subjects would manifest cognitive (specific difficulties in executive functions), emotional (emotional disruption, impulsivity, etc.) and neurobiological (secretion of kynurenine and neurokinins in the face of stress) caracteristics different from those of AM subjects.

The hospitalization in patients with anorexia nervosa has often a short-term success, as weight is restored to a healthy level, but high percentage of patients relapse during the first year following the discharge. Starting from the observation that the relapse rate is lower in outpatient than in inpatient settings, the investigators hypothesized that the reason of this difference is the nature of inpatient treatment and post-inpatient therapy. For this reason, different procedures and strategies have been implemented during hospitalization to reduce the relapse after discharge. The aim of the study was to assess the time and the percentage of relapse after inpatient discharge and at follow-up.

Across the United States, thousands of children and adolescents suffer from eating disorders. Among young women alone, an estimated 2 to 4 percent are dealing with anorexia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa also has the highest mortality rate of any psychiatric disorder and produces a six-fold increased risk for death. Unfortunately, study shows that current treatments are only successful with 25 percent of patients and no eating disorder prevention program has been found to reduce future onset of anorexia nervosa. The goal of this study is to conduct a highly innovative pilot study that will identify risk factors that predict future onset of anorexia nervosa and investigate how the risk processes for anorexia nervosa are different from the risk processes for bulimia nervosa. The proposed pilot study will: Compare 30 healthy adolescent girls at high risk for anorexia nervosa to 30 healthy adolescent girls at high risk for bulimia nervosa, and 30 healthy adolescent girls at low risk for eating disorder in an effort to document risk processes that are present in early adolescence before anorexia nervosa typically emerges. Test whether elevations in the hypothesized risk factors predict future onset of anorexia nervosa over a four-year follow-up.

Anorexia nervosa is a severe cause of undernutrition. It leads to a dramatic decrease of weight with an important modification of the body composition. During the renutrition phase, disharmonious body composition recovery is a relapse factor. Dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is the gold standard to study body composition in children with anorexia nervosa. But, due to technical limits, DXA analysis needs to take in account a potential failure to thrive with an adjustment on height. Moreover DXA needs an irradiation which does not allow close repeat measurements. Since several years, a simple, non-invasive, non-irradiant method for measure of body composition has been developed in pediatrics: the air displacement plethysmography (ADP). Actually, only one device is available for this measurement: the BodPod®. However, feasibility and accuracy of ADP compare to DXA have not been evaluated in pediatric anorexia nervosa. The aim of this study is to compare the accuracy of BodPod® compare to DXA in girls with anorexia nervosa.

Anorexia nervosa is characterized by intestinal dysbiosis, related to the feeding behavior impairment presented by these patients. Pathophysiologic hypotheses are involving the trouble of the microbiota-gut-brain axis in the field of mental diseases.

People with anorexia nervosa are known to engage in significant physical activity or sports. This practice is problematic because of the state of malnutrition, its interference with re-nutrition and the somatic and nutritional complications that the effect of physical activity can cause in these people. This significant physical activity is also called hyperactivity in the literature, it is in fact a problematic use of physical activity, it is a symptom commonly observed in people suffering from anorexia nervosa (in 31 to 80% cases). In this context, Ms. Kern lecturer in Sciences and Techniques of Physical and Sports Activities (STAPS) at the University of Paris Nanterre has developed in collaboration with the clinical team (Pre Godart) an adapted physical activity program (APA) , for patients suffering from anorexia nervosa. The APA program includes 8 sessions of 1h30 including an important part of psychoeducation. The effectiveness of this program will be evaluated in terms of both restoration of body mass index and improvement in overall health. The project's hypothesis is that adding a standardized 8-week Adapted Physical Activity program to the usual care, including psychoeducation on both problematic physical activity and the consequences in terms of good practice of physical activity leads to a better outcome of overall care in people with anorexia nervosa.