Anorexia nervosa in adults: The urgent need for novel outpatient treatments that work

Abstract

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious psychiatric disorder that often follows a protracted course, and continues to confound those who attempt treatment once the patient has reached adulthood. Several randomized clinical trials for adults with AN have tested well-known therapies such as cognitive behavior therapy, supportive psychotherapies, or focal psychodynamic therapy, all of which have delivered frustratingly few helpful treatment strategies. Perhaps a different path could be pursued where we do not aim to cure all patients with 1 or 2 of these well-trodden therapies. Instead, a more targeted alternative, testing several novel approaches, could collectively reach a larger cohort of patients suffering from AN, the most lethal of all psychiatric disorders. (PsycINFO Database Record