Active clinical trials for "Feeding and Eating Disorders"

Food craving is a major therapeutic issue in Eating Disorders with binge eating: the Bulimia Nervosa and the Binge Eating Disorder (BED). Food craving is linked to compulsive eating and its apprehension is currently based on classic Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies (CBT). However, it remains difficult to induce in therapy and a significant number of patients do not respond to classic CBTs. The development of exposure scenarios for CBT in virtual reality (VR) has allowed a gain in efficacy and in particular therapeutic effects lasting longer after treatment. Nevertheless, the stimuli used are often simple food visuals and insufficiently consider the many factors influencing food craving (physical, psychological, socio-environmental...) and VR immersion is still limited by the use of 3D laptops (fixed) rather than wireless headsets.

The research will be carried out as a randomized controlled experimental design to evaluate the effectiveness of the breastfeeding support system to increase sucking success in premature infants receiving care in the NICU and breastfeeding self-efficacy in mothers. In the study, the experimental and control groups will be determined by randomization of premature babies hospitalized in the NICU. While the babies in the control group will be fed with the routine feeding method (bottle) of the NICU, the babies in the experimental group will be fed with the breastfeeding support system by their mother. Research data will be collected using the Premature Baby and Its Mother Information Form, Premature Baby Follow-up Form, LATCH Breastfeeding Diagnostic Scale and Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form.

To demonstrate the effectiveness of an easily administered intervention (guided self help) aimed at reducing binge eating in patients undergoing bariatric surgery. The investigators hypothesize that patients who have guided self help pre-operatively will have reduced episodes of bingeing pre-operatively compared to those having treatment as usual (bariatric surgery), which will be maintained in the post-operative period, and will be associated with improved weight loss and psychological outcomes after surgery.

Bulimia nervosa is a severe psychiatric disorder characterized by recurrent binge eating episodes followed by inappropriate compensatory behavior to prevent weight gain such as self-induced vomiting. With this project, the investigators want to investigate the role of the neurotransmitter dopamine in bulimia nervosa. Dopamine is reported to have an important influence on the neural reward system and is involved in the processing of gains and losses. The reward system is functionally connected to the individual perception of rewards in the environment. A previous study revealed that under catecholamine depletion including dopamine depletion women suffering from bulimia nervosa in their past reported mild bulimic symptoms and their reward processing became dysfunctional: their ability to use rewarding stimuli for task solving was diminished. The aim of this study is to investigate the role of reduced dopamine availability in the development or maintaining of bulimia nervosa and in the dysfunctional processing of rewarding stimuli and negative visual information. Therefore, the investigators hypothesize that catecholamine depletion achieved by oral administration of alpha-methyl-paratyrosine (AMPT) will induce mild bulimic symptoms in females suffering from bulimia nervosa in their past. In addition, they will reveal dysfunctions in reward and emotional processing under catecholamine depletion. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, the investigators propose that a reduced activation of the nucleus accumbens, a neural structure of the reward system, will be the neural correlate of this dysfunctional reward processing. Furthermore, the amygdala, a neural structure that is involved in emotional processing, will show a higher activation under catecholamine depletion. Genetic factors additionally have an influence on the dopaminergic system. Therefore, the investigators hypothesize that genetic factors, for example the COMT val-158-met polymorphism may have an effect on the behavioral and neural response to catecholamine depletion. In sum, this investigation may help to understand which changes in reward and emotional processing may lead to a reoccurrence of bulimic symptoms. In future, the findings of this study may help to develop individual pharmacological and psychotherapeutical interventions to enhance the outcome of treatment.

The study is a 17-week, single-center, double-blind, parallel-group, randomized placebo controlled trial that will test the efficacy of liraglutide 3.0 mg/d as compared to placebo in reducing the number of binge episodes per week, achieving remission from binge episodes, and in changes in body weight, global BED symptom improvement, cognitive restraint of food intake, dietary disinhibition, perceived hunger, quality of life, and depressed mood at treatment end.

This 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.

The 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.

The primary objective of this pilot study is to explore the effect of artificial lighting on affective symptoms, and the secondary aim is to explore the effect of artificial lighting on core symptoms of eating disorders (ED). Several lines of evidence, albeit from hypothesis generation studies, suggest that artificial lighting may have a positive effect on well-being, mental health and affective symptoms in ED. The rationale of this study is to investigate the effects of artificial lighting on affective symptoms and cores symptoms of ED in inpatients undergoing weight restoration/treatment for ED. Study design: Single-blind, controlled, pilot intervention study with circadian light (CL) comparing two CL regimens effects on mood symptoms. Planned number of subjects: 16 patients with a ICD-10 diagnosis of Anorexia Nervosa, that completes exposure to at least three weeks of the two different CL regimens (L1 and L2) in any order.

The "inpatient-equivalent home treatment"(IEHT) according to §115d SGB-V is a particular version of the internationally well-known and evidence-based Home Treatment. As a complex intervention, IEHT requires a multi-method evaluation on different levels in the German context. The AKtiV study that is financed by the Innovation Fund of the Federal Joint Committee (proposal ID: VSF2_2019-108) meets this request. In this quasi-experimental study with a propensity score-matched control group, we assess and combine quantitative and qualitative data. Outcome parameters include classical clinical ones such as hospital readmission rates, mental state, and recovery outcomes. In addition, it evaluates issues concerning the right target population, treatment processes, implementation strategies, and factors associated with positive outcomes. The study takes into account the perspective of patients, relatives, staff as well as decision makers in politics and administration. Therefore, we expect the results to be relevant for a broad audience and to contribute to further refinement and adaption of the model.

Eating disorders are multifactorial disorders currently conceptualized in a biopsychosocial model, but pathophysiology remains relatively unknown, and robust etiological models to guide treatment are therefore lacking. Different endophenotypes and neurocognitive vulnerability factors have been found in eating disorders including decision making abnormalities. The investigators hypothesize that decision making abnormalities are associated with a lower level of functioning and quality of life which could lead to social and interpersonal difficulties. The investigators also hypothesize that these anomalies are associated with a particular clinical profile (more restrictive profile, more hyperactivity, less insight on the disease and desire for care ...).