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Are Low Body Weight and Psychological Symptoms Associated with Cognitive Function in Children and Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 March 2020

G. Kjærsdam Telléus ,
J.R. Jepsen ,
M. Fjelkegaard ,
E. Christiansen ,
F. Birgitte ,
J.B. Valentin  and
P.H. Thomsen
G. Kjærsdam Telléus
Affiliation:
Aalborg University Hospital & Aalborg Universitry, Psychiatric Department Aalborg & Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Aalborg, Denmark
J.R. Jepsen
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Center Copenhagen, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Center, Mental Health Services, Copenhagen, Denmark
M. Fjelkegaard
Affiliation:
Stockholm Center for Eating Disorders, Family Care Unit, Stockholm, Sweden
E. Christiansen
Affiliation:
Medical specialist clinic in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Private Setting, Copenhagen, Denmark
F. Birgitte
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Center Copenhagen, Lundbeck Foundation Center for Clinical Intervention and Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research CINS & Center for Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research CNSR, Psychiatric Center Glostrup, Copenhagen, Denmark
J.B. Valentin
Affiliation:
Aalborg University Hospital, Psychiatric Department Aalborg, Aalborg, Denmark
P.H. Thomsen
Affiliation:
Aarhus University Hospital & Aalborg University, Regional Centre of Child, and Adolescent Psychiatry, Risskov & Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Risskov, Denmark

Abstract

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Introduction

Despite an increasing focus on cognitive functions in eating disorders, only limited and contradictory knowledge regarding the relationship between cognitive functions and anorexia nervosa symptomatology currently exist.

Objectives

The aim of this study was to investigate potential associations between cognitive functions and anorexia nervosa symptomatology in children and adolescents.

Method

Eating disorder symptoms and cognitive functions were examined in this cross-sectional, multi-centre study. Diagnostic scores i.e. BMI, psychological symptoms, and global EDE-16 were stratified on cognitive function. Children and adolescents suffering from severe recent-onset anorexia nervosa (n = 94) and healthy controls (n = 94), between the age 10.6 and 17.9 years (mean age 14.9 years, SD 1.8), participated in the study. The patients were divided into two groups, respectively above and below the median of cognitive functions.

Results

The study findings revealed that Global EDE score significantly increased with age (P = 0.002, CI 0.08–0.36). Besides this, no significant associations between low body weight or psychological symptoms and cognitive functions were found. However, a large variability in cognitive functions was found on all measure in patients with anorexia nervosa than healthy controls.

Conclusion

While age seems to be significantly correlated to symptom burden the study results indicate that patients with anorexia nervosa is a much more heterogeneous group with regard to cognition than healthy controls. However, cognitive functions and anorexia nervosa symptomatology does not appear to be associated.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Type
e-Poster Walk: Sexual medicine and mental health/sleep disorders and stress/eating disorders
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 41 , Issue S1: Abstract of the 25th European Congress of Psychiatry , April 2017 , pp. S285
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association 2017
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