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Anorexia and Depression: Depressive Comorbidity in Anorexic Adolescents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 April 2014

Carmen García-Alba
Carmen García-Alba*
Affiliation:
José Germain Psychiatric Institute of Leganés, Madrid
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Carmen Garcia-Alba, Ronda Delicias 21, Majadahonda, 28220 Madrid (Spain). Fax: 91 638 0243. E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Frequently, depression is a concomitant pathology in anorexia nervosa. To verify this, we carried out a comparative case/control study with 50 anorexic patients, restricting-type (ANP), 50 depressed patients (DP) and 50 non-patients (NP), aged between 13 and 16. We used the Rorschach Test and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and compared the results to parent's observations collected from the Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Results showed two clearly different groups among participants: ANP with depression (36%) and ANP without depression (64%). This seems to indicate that depression is not a core element in anorexic disorders. However, we also observed a significant increase in the MMPI scale 2, which was probably related to starvation and weight loss. We confirmed the absence of general anxiety in the ANP group and obtained differences between depressive symptoms and those derived from coping deficit disorders. The discussion emphasizes the importance of using several tests to reduce bias in results and conclusions.

La depresión es, frecuentemente, una patología concomitante con la anorexia nerviosa. Para verificarlo, se diseñó un estudio comparativo con 50 pacientes anoréxicas, tipo restrictivo (ANP), 50 deprimidas (DP) y 50 no pacientes (NP), de edades comprendidas entre los 13 y 16 años. Se utilizaron el Test de Rorschach y el Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), comparándose los resultados con las observaciones de los padres, recogidas de forma estandardizada a través del Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Los resultados obtenidos mostraron la existencia de dos grupos claramente diferenciados: ANP con depresión (36%) y ANP sin depresión (64%). Por lo tanto, parece que la depresión no es nuclear en la patología anoréxica. No obstante, se apreció un aumento significativo de la escala 2 del MMPI, probablemente consecutivo a la inanición y pérdida de peso. Además, en el grupo ANP se ha constatado la ausencia de ansiedad generalizada. También se encontraron diferencias entre el síndrome depresivo y las alteraciones derivadas de la indefensión social. Igualmente, se ha subrayado la importancia de investigar con distintos tests, para evitar sesgos en los resultados y conclusiones.

Keywords

anorexia nervosadepressionassessmentadolescentsRorschach TestMMPIanorexia nerviosadepresiónevaluaciónadolescentesTest de Rorschach MMPI
Type
Articles
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , May 2004 , pp. 40 - 52
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2004

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