MOSCOW, April 22. SSMU scientists conducted psychodiagnostics of teenagers with eating disorders and identified symptoms of depression in each of them. Thus, the validity of prescribing antidepressants for this group of patients was proven. The results of the study were published in the Journal of Neurology and Psychiatry. S.S. Korsakov.
Eating disorders (EDs) are psychiatric illnesses that damage a person's physical and mental health and reduce their overall quality of life: relationships, work and personal development suffer. The most common eating disorders are anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge-eating disorder.
Scientists from Saratov State Medical University (SSMU) named after. IN AND. Razumovsky conducted work to identify the characteristics of anxiety and depressive disorders in adolescents with eating disorders. For this purpose, various psychodiagnostic methods were used — the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI-Children's Depression Inventory), the method of multidimensional assessment of children's anxiety (author E. Romitsyna), the «Lazarus Coping Strategies» method and the eating behavior assessment scale.
During the study, it was found that all diagnostic participants, without exception, had symptoms of depression, but girls of older adolescence showed more pronounced depression.
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"All adolescents were characterized by a high level of anxiety associated with the assessment of others and relationships with peers. They also had instability of the autonomic nervous system and an asthenic type of response to stress,” said Yulia Barylnik, head of the department of psychiatry, addiction, psychotherapy and clinical psychology at SSMU.
At the same time, she explained that this type of response is manifested by a whole complex of psycho-emotional and somato-vegetative reactions characteristic of people with a labile nervous system. According to the psychiatrist, older adolescents demonstrated a more pronounced overall level of anxiety associated with aspects of self-esteem, self-confidence and a sense of future prospects.
Experts have also found that adolescents with eating disorders of all age groups often use maladaptive behavioral strategies when faced with difficulties, which can negatively affect the effectiveness of their treatment. The results obtained during the study, according to scientists, confirm the validity of antidepressant and anti-anxiety therapy for such patients. According to doctors, this is especially important since there are currently no clear clinical guidelines for the treatment of eating disorder.
“Often, parents, overloaded with work and worries, do not pay due attention to the child’s psychological state and ignore insufficient or excess body weight. As a rule, this is accompanied by the problem of bullying at school, which can trigger the further development of eating disorder when the teenager begins to sharply limit himself in food «, said the professor.
So, according to her, the other day a 17-year-old young man was admitted to the crisis department of Clinical Hospital No. 3 of the SSMU. With a height of 170 cm, his weight was only 32 kg. “This boy’s problems began at school, when a classmate called him fat for the first time,” she noted, calling on parents to “eradicate the fear of going to a psychiatrist.”
“Anxiety and depression are not a person’s whim, but a disease that requires treatment. Contacting a competent specialist and selecting a treatment regimen can significantly improve the patient’s condition and improve his quality of life,” said Yulia Barylnik. According to her, “in many countries they have long ceased to be afraid of antidepressants; the myth that they cause dependence and addiction has been debunked.”
The research by Saratov specialists is part of a broader scientific project dedicated to eating disorders. Scientists plan to continue studying the psychological, psychopathological and psychotherapeutic aspects of such disorders.