Objetivo. Las dificultades de procesamiento emocional han sido relacionadas con los trastornos de la conducta alimentaria, aunque existe un debate acerca de si anteceden o son consecuencia de ellos. La mayoría de los estudios han sido realizados en pacientes adultas de larga evolución y pocos han incluido pacientes menores. Nuestro estudio compara las dificultades de reconocimiento y regulación emocional en pacientes adultas y adolescentes y pretende discriminar si estos actúan como factores predisponentes y/o de mantenimiento. Método. Se compararon 48 pacientes (27 adultas, 21 adolescentes), con 41 controles sanos (13 adultas, 28 adolescentes) mediante la Escala de Alexitimia de Toronto (TAS-20) y la Escala de Dificultades de Regulación Emocional (DERS). Resultados. Todas las pacientes presentan mayores dificultades en reconocimiento (alexitimia) y regulación emocional que los sujetos control. No se han obtenido diferencias entre pacientes en función del diagnóstico ni del índice de masa corporal (IMC). La intensidad de las dificultades está modulada por edad y gravedad del trastorno. Las pacientes adultas muestran una alexitimia más intensa que las adolescentes, aunque ambos grupos muestran dificultades similares en aceptación y regulación emocional. Las pacientes más graves (adultas y adolescentes) presentan mayor grado de alexitimia, rechazo y descontrol emocional. Conclusiones. Es esencial incluir intervenciones terapéuticas emocionales desde el inicio del tratamiento. Los programas de prevención deben facilitar el reconocimiento, aceptación y regulación emocional de las personas en riesgo.Objective. Though difficulties in emotional processing have been associated to eating disorders (EDs), the debate as to whether these difficulties are antecedents or consequence of EDs remains a contentious issue. Most studies have focused on long-term adult patients, but few studies have assessed adolescent patients. This study compared difficulties in emotional recognition and regulation in adult and adolescent patients to determine if they were predisposing factors and/or maintenance factors. Method. A total of 48 patients (27 adults, 21 adolescents) were compared with 41 healthy controls (13 adults, and 28 adolescents) using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS). Results. All of the patients exhibited more difficulties in emotional recognition (alexithymia) and regulation than controls. No differences were observed among patients in terms of body mass index (BMI). The intensity of these difficulties was modulated by age and the severity of the disorder. Alexithymia was more intense in adult patients than in adolescent patients, but both groups showed similar difficulties in emotional acceptance and regulation. Severely affected patients (adult and adolescents) exhibited higher levels of alexithymia, rejection, and emotional dysfunction. Conclusion. It is crucial that emotional therapeutic interventions are carried out from the commencement of treatment. Preventio...

The paper reports on the clinical characteristics, treatment and results of a group of 41 patients suffering from anorexia nervosa. All patients were diagnosed according to DSM-III criteria. Mean age was 18.6 years, within a range from 12 to 33 years. The group was formed by 40 female patients and 1 male. Twenty-nine percent of the patients had previously received treatment. Duration of treatment fell within a range of 10–36 months, 18–24 being the most frequent. Forty-four and a half percent of the patients were admitted to hospital with a 59-day mean time of hospitalization and treatment was positive in over 80% of cases. Two patients suffered a relapse during the first 2 or 3 years, but later recovered. Five years after the beginning of treatment, 1 patient suffered a relapse and received supplementary treatment.

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