Epidemiology and risk factors of eating disorders: A two-stage epidemiologic study in a Spanish population aged 12-18 years

Objective The authors studied the prevalence rates of eating disorders (ED) and their risk factors in a Spanish population aged 12–18 years. Method A two-stage epidemiologic study was conducted in the province of Valencia. Educational centers, classrooms, and individuals were selected randomly. The initial sample comprised 544 subjects. During Stage 1, subjects were screened with the 40-item Eating Attitude Test and a sociodemographic questionnaire that evaluates risk factors. During Stage 2, a semistandardized clinical interview was conducted with each participant. A random control group was paired by class, age, and sex. Comorbid psychiatric disorders and partial and subclinical forms wer…

Comorbidity between obesity and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Population study with 13–15-year-olds

Objective: This study analyzes whether obese children have a higher risk of attention deficit/hyperactivity “characteristics” (AD/HD) than do children with other nutritional states. Method: This study included 35,403 participants from 486 community schools. They completed the AD/HD scale of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and were weighed and measured. 2879 of the participants were obese and 78 were morbidly obese (BMI >40). Results: A discrete, nonsignificant, increment was found in the AD/HD characteristics of male participants with morbid obesity, as compared with the other nutritional states. Among morbidly obese females, the prevalence of AD/HD characteristics was sl…

Habituation and Sensitization Processes in Depressive Disorders

The aim of the present study was to investigate further into habituation and sensitization processes in depressive disorders. The depressive subjects were 27 outpatients. All of them were diagnosed according to DSM-III-R criteria. Controls were 27 normal subjects. The amplitudes of electrodermal responses and the basal levels were recorded during a stimuli series of 15 80-dB tones and of 1 100-dB tone in the 11th trial. The depressive patients displayed lower basal conductance levels and lower conductance amplitudes in orienting responses to the first stimulus and to stimulus change. No differences were found in conductance response amplitudes of stimuli series, although a tendency towards …

Influence of Stress in the Onset of Eating Disorders: Data From a Two-Stage Epidemiologic Controlled Study

Background We explore the role of stress in the onset of eating disorders (EDs) in a community sample of adolescents, the mediating role of psychiatric comorbidity and the quantitative evolution of stress in the year preceding the onset of an ED. Methods The Life Events and Difficulties Schedule interview was applied to a sample with 32 cases and 32 controls selected from a two-phase epidemiologic study among a representative population of adolescents, followed by a decay model to assess acute and chronic stress in the year preceding the onset of ED. Psychiatric comorbidity was assessed using the SCAN interview. Results Cases (46.9%) and 9.4% of controls were found to have associated psychi…

Impulsivity, sensation seeking and aggressiveness in patients with bipolar I and II disorder

Abstract Objective Although impulsivity may seem to be strongly linked to bipolar disorder, few studies have directly measured this phenomenon. To determine its implications for the prognosis of this illness, we studied the relationship between impulsivity and other aspects that are probably related, such as sensation seeking and aggressiveness, and different clinical variables of bipolar disorder. Method Sixty-nine (type I, n = 42; type II, n = 27) outpatients from a unit specifically for bipolar patients in remission completed the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS), the Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS), the Buss–Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI) and the Bipolar Eating Disorder Scale (BEDS). S…

Involvement of leucocyte/endothelial cell interactions in anorexia nervosa.

Background Anorexia nervosa is a common psychiatric disorder in adolescence and is related to cardiovascular complications. Our aim was to study the effect of anorexia nervosa on metabolic parameters, leucocyte–endothelium interactions, adhesion molecules and proinflammatory cytokines. Materials and Methods This multicentre, cross-sectional, case–control study employed a population of 24 anorexic female patients and 36 controls. We evaluated anthropometric and metabolic parameters, interactions between leucocytes polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC), proinflammatory cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL…

Teasing as a risk factor for abnormal eating behaviours: A prospective study in an adolescent population.

Abstract Introduction There are discrepancies in the literature about the role of teasing in the onset of eating pathology. This article aims to establish the influence of teasing in abnormal eating behaviours and attitudes in the adolescent population. Material and methods This is a two-year prospective study conducted in 7167 adolescents between 13 and 15 years of age. In a first assessment, teasing about weight and teasing about abilities were measured by means of the POTS.questionnaire. Its association with eating psychopathology after two years was analysed controlling nutritional status (BMI), body dissatisfaction, drive to thinness, perfectionism (EDI), emotional symptoms and hyperac…

Burlas como factor de riesgo para conductas alimentarias anómalas: estudio prospectivo en una población adolescente

Resumen Introduccion Existen discrepancias en la literatura sobre el papel de las burlas en la aparicion de clinica alimentaria. El objetivo de este articulo es establecer la influencia de las burlas sobre la aparicion de conductas alimentarias anomalas en una poblacion adolescente. Material y metodos Se trata de un estudio prospectivo a 2 anos en el que participaron 7.167 adolescentes de entre 13 y 15 anos. En una evaluacion basal se estudio su exposicion a burlas sobre el peso y sobre las capacidades, mediante el cuestionario POTS. Posteriormente, se analizo su asociacion con psicopatologia alimentaria (EAT) ulterior controlando el efecto del estado nutricional (IMC), la insatisfaccion co…

Abnormal emotional processing in maltreated children diagnosed of Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Abstract Maltreated children usually show a specific pattern of emotional and behavioral symptoms that exceed those relating to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These symptoms have been defined as Complex PTSD (CPTSD). The underlying attentional mechanisms of abnormal emotional processing and their relation to the clinical presentation of CPTSD are not well understood. A visual dot-probe paradigm involving pre-attentive (i.e., 500 ms) and attentive (i.e., 1500 ms) presentation rates of neutral versus emotional (i.e., angry, happy or sad) facial expressions was applied. Twenty-one maltreated CPTSD children were compared with twenty-six controls. The results are as follows: an attention …

Impulsividad, búsqueda de sensaciones y agresividad en pacientes bipolares tipo I y II

Resumen Introduccion Aunque la impulsividad puede aparecer fuertemente relacionada con el trastorno bipolar, pocos estudios han medido directamente este fenomeno. Con el objetivo de conocer sus implicaciones pronosticas, estudiamos la relacion entre la impulsividad y otros aspectos probablemente relacionados con ella, como son la busqueda de sensaciones y la agresividad y diferentes variables clinicas del trastorno bipolar. Metodos 69 pacientes ambulatorios en remision (tipo I, n = 42; tipo II, n = 27) de una unidad especifica de trastornos bipolares completaron la Escala de Impulsividad Barratt (BIS), la Escala de Busqueda de Sensaciones (SSS), el Inventario de Hostilidad de Buss-Durkee (B…

Is melatonin an adjunctive stabilizer?

Altered Mitochondrial Function and Oxidative Stress in Leukocytes of Anorexia Nervosa Patients

ContextAnorexia nervosa is a common illness among adolescents and is characterised by oxidative stress.ObjectiveThe effects of anorexia on mitochondrial function and redox state in leukocytes from anorexic subjects were evaluated.Design and settingA multi-centre, cross-sectional case-control study was performed.PatientsOur study population consisted of 20 anorexic patients and 20 age-matched controls, all of which were Caucasian women.Main outcome measuresAnthropometric and metabolic parameters were evaluated in the study population. To assess whether anorexia nervosa affects mitochondrial function and redox state in leukocytes of anorexic patients, we measured mitochondrial oxygen consumpt…

Comparative neurocognitive effects of lithium and anticonvulsants in long-term stable bipolar patients

Background: The aim of choosing a mood-stabilizing drug (lithium or anticonvulsants) or a combination of them with minimal neurocognitive effects is to stimulate the development of criteria for a therapeutic adequacy, particularly in Bipolar Disorder (BD) patients who are clinically stabilized. Method: Three groups of BD patients were established according to their treatment: (i) lithium monotherapy (n=29); (ii) lithium together with one or more anticonvulsants (n=28); and (iii) one or more anticonvulsants (n=16). A group of healthy controls served as the control (n=25). The following tests were applied: Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, Trail Making Test, Wechsler Memory Scale, Rey Comple…