University of California, San Francisco anorexia study challenges old treatment methods

The University of California, San Francisco conducted a study to test the effectiveness of recommendations set by several American Associations to treat adolescents diagnosed with anorexia nervosa; the study demonstrated that these recommendations are ineffective. The recommendations, which have been in place since 2000, suggest that the most effective treatment is to begin renutrition with 1,200 calories a day and increase it by increments of 200 every other day to avoid a near fatal condition called refeeding syndrome. The study tested female adolescents being treated with current recommendations, by feeding them 6 times a day. The two important correlations in the study that emerged were: patients who started off on a lower caloric diet loss more weight, and patients who started off on a higher caloric diet decreased time spent in the hospital. Throughout the duration of the study, not a single patient underwent an adverse event.


SOURCE: University of California, San Francisco News Room