Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents and Young Adults
Major DepressionBulimia Nervosa1 moreThe purpose of the project is to study the effectiveness of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) for adolescents and young adults when applied to depression and eating disorders. Specific aims are to analyze the effects, change mechanisms, predictors, and implementation of IPT for youth. In this four-year project we will include 120 patients with depression and 60 adolescents and young adults with eating disorders. Outcome will be studied using a quasi-experimental multiple-baseline design. Change mechanisms will be studied in the form of mentalizing, emotion regulation, social support, and working alliance session-by-session, and with post-treatment qualitative interviews about the participants' experiences of change. Predictors of effectiveness of IPT for adolescents and young adults will be explored by measuring severity of symptoms, anxiety symptoms, presence and severity of parent-child conflicts, quality of interpersonal relationships, experiences of bullying, and school functioning. The implementation process of IPT for youth will be studied through interviews with adolescents, parents, therapists, co-workers, and local managers. The study is a multi-center study within child and adolescent psychiatric services in Gothenburg and Norrköping using a practice-oriented research strategy which emphasizes close collaboration with clinicians. The project is a collaboration between researchers at Linnaeus University, Linköping University, and University of Gothenburg, and clinicians at the BUP Norrköping and Ätstörningscentrum Barn och Unga Vuxna, Sahlgrenska University Hospital.
Identifying Effective Technological-based Augmentations to Enhance Outcomes From Self-help Cognitive...
Binge EatingBinge-Eating Disorder2 moreThe purpose of this study is to test the feasibility, acceptability and efficacy of two technology-based intervention systems (including an Advanced Digital Data Sharing (ADDS) with Coaches or a smartphone-based just-in-time, adaptive interventions (JITAIs) system) for improving treatment adherence, skills utilization and binge eating when used in conjunction with a self-help cognitive behavior therapy [CBT] delivered via a smartphone application [app]). The study is being conducted to test a novel approach to providing evidence-based treatment for binge eating without clinician support in a routine clinical setting.
Cognitive Training for Patients With Eating Disorders
Feeding and Eating DisordersAnorexia Nervosa2 moreEating disorders are severe mental illnesses, mainly affecting adolescent- and young adult women. The prognoses for eating disorders are relatively poor, and a large part of patients with these illnesses do not benefit from available conventional therapies. After decades of research into the causes of eating disorders, there is now compelling evidence for specific neuropsychological difficulties in patients affected by eating disorders. These neuropsychological difficulties are characterized by cognitive and behavioral rigidity (poor set-shifting abilities), as well as difficulties related to central coherence, planning and impulse control. Surprisingly, few therapies specifically target these difficulties, and they are rarely incorporated into treatment. Cognitive Remediation Therapy has shown promising results as an adjunctive therapeutic intervention for patients with anorexia Nervosa. The primary aim of this randomized controlled trial is thus to investigate the effect of Cognitive Remediation Therapy on neuropsychological function, symptoms of eating disorders and general mental health, quality of life and motor activity in women with both eating disorders (transdiagnostic) and these specific cognitive difficulties.
Step by Step Group Therapy for Bulimia Nervosa: Effectiveness and Mechanisms of Change.
Bulimia NervosaThis a pseudo-randomized clinical trial that examines if a specific group therapy for BN is effective in improving its symptomatology, and what variables mediate such improvements. To do so a sample of 100 patients with BN will be pseudorandomized in a Group Therapy for BN or in a control waiting list group. Patients will be assessed at baseline, at the end of the group therapy and at 2 year follow up.
Ketone Supplementation in Eating Disorders
Anorexia NervosaBulimia Nervosa2 moreThis study will investigate the effects of ketone supplementation on eating behavior including drive to binge eat or restrict, mood and anxiety in individuals with anorexia or bulimia nervosa. In addition, the investigators will contrast the effects of active ketone supplementation versus placebo on electroencephalogram (EEG) measurement. All subjects enrolled in the study will undergo EEG on two consecutive days at the beginning of the study, after active ketone supplementation or placebo drink, matched in taste to the ketone drink. Days will be randomized. Thereafter, all subjects will take the ketone supplementation drink for two weeks, twice daily.
Smartphone-based Aftercare for Inpatients With Bulimia Nervosa
Bulimia NervosaInpatient treatment for patients with bulimia nervosa (BN) is recommended in extreme or severe cases and/or after failure of outpatient treatment and is highly effective. However, a number of patients show symptom increase and relapse after discharge. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of a guided smartphone-based aftercare intervention following inpatient treatment of patients with BN to support recovery.
Optimizing Digital Health Technology Interventions to Increase Skill Acquisition and Utilization...
Bulimia NervosaBulimia2 moreThe purpose of this study is to identify the independent and combined effects of two types of self-monitoring and two types of micro-interventions when combined with standard cognitive behavioral treatment for bulimia nervosa (BN) and binge eating disorder (BED). The primary aims of this study are (1) to evaluate the optimal complexity of Self-Monitoring and Micro-Interventions on eating pathology (at post-treatment and at 6 and 12-month follow-ups and (2) to test the hypotheses that the optimal complexity level of each component is moderated by baseline deficits in self-regulation. The secondary aim will be to test target engagement for each level of complexity for each component, i.e., to test whether higher complexity of each technological components is associated with better rates of therapeutic skill use and acquisition and that improvements in skill use and acquisition are associated with improvements in outcomes. A final exploratory aim will be to quantify the component interaction effects, which may be partially additive (because components overlap and/or there is diminishing return), fully additive, or synergistic (in that component complexities may partially depend on each other).
Building an Equitable and Accessible System of Eating Disorder Care for VA, DoD, and Underrepresented...
Binge-Eating DisorderBulimia Nervosa2 moreWhen untreated, eating disorders present with tremendous burdens to affected active duty Service members and Veterans and their families, and are very costly to the DoD and VA healthcare system. A comparative effectiveness study with state-of-the-art virtual treatment for BN and BED specifically adapted for testing with the Veteran population and other underrepresented eating disorder populations will lead to major improvements in clinical outcomes. The treatment will be integrated with VA's newest telehealth technology to profoundly enhance access to care anywhere, at any time. This trial of therapist-led and self-help CBT treatments, combined with our expert panel methods to inform VA Clinical Practice Guidelines for Eating Disorders and plans for dissemination, will accelerate the pace for the transition of results both for large-scale deployment in the VA system and for real-world impact among diverse and underrepresented eating disorder populations.
Evaluation of a Web-Based Intervention for Bulimia Nervosa
Bulimia NervosaThis study evaluates the effectiveness of a web-based intervention specifically designed for patients with Bulimia Nervosa (BN) in a blinded randomized controlled trial. After a sign-up process, a diagnostic interview, and a baseline assessment, eligible participants will be randomly allocated either to (1) an intervention group including the online web-based intervention for BN or (2) a waitlist control group with delayed access to the intervention (12 weeks). The program comprises six mandatory weekly sessions and six modular specialization areas resulting in a treatment period of 12 weeks. Minimal guidance is provided via a chat function. Assessments will be conducted at pretreatment (study entrance), six weeks after baseline (mid-treatment), and 12 weeks after baseline (post-treatment). The investigators expect that the intervention group will show lower frequencies of binge eating episodes and compensatory behavior as the primary outcome variables after the 12 weeks of treatment compared to a waitlist control condition. Moreoever, the investigators assume that there will be a higher reduction in global eating disorder symptoms, comorbid psychopathology, and a higher increase in well-being and self-esteem over 12 weeks in the intervention group compared to the waitlist control group. Finally, the investigators expect that the intervention group will demonstrate a significantly higher reduction in functional impairment, substantially better restoration of work capacity, and an improved ability to regulate emotions after the 12 weeks of treatment.
Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorder: Comparing Therapeutic Strategies
Bulimia NervosaBinge-Eating DisorderThis study aims to assess the effectiveness of new neurostimulation techniques in patients with eating disorders. The primary aim of our proposal is to test a reduction in symptoms of alteration of eating behaviors, such as always thinking about food or binge eating, in a sample of 30 patients, aged between 18 and 65, with diagnosis of Bulimia Nervosa or Binge Eating Disorder. Of these patients, 10 will undergo to a protocol of vagal transcutaneous stimulation in the ear (tVNS) and targeted cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT-E), another 10 to a protocol of transcranial magnetic stimulation (rtms) and CBT-E and another 10 to a protocol of only tergeted CBT-E, comparing the results obtained in the three groups under study. Secondary purposes of this project are the assessment of the effects of auricular vagal transcutaneous stimulation and of transcranial magnetic stimulation on depressive symptoms associated with eating disorder, on the inflammatory profile, on cardiovascular autonomic control, neuronal excitability, functional connectivity and on the quality of life of these patients. In order to achieve the objectives of this research project, we will perform a national, interventional on a medical device, monocentric study, controlled in 3 parallel and randomized groups with a 1:1:1 allocation ratio. 30 patients will be recruited at the Day Hospital of the Psychiatry Unit of the Fondazione.