A Case Series Investigating Distinct Neuropsychological Profiles in Children and Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa

Abstract

A number of specific deficits in neuropsychological functioning in anorexia nervosa (AN) have been identified. However, it is not known whether these specific deficits cluster together to form one or more clear neuropsychological profiles. We present a case series of nine participants who were recruited as part of a wider, ongoing investigation of the neuropsychological profile of eating disorders (the Ravello Profile). Results show that there was a wide range of different neuropsychological profiles at initial assessment. This suggests a spectrum of neuropsychological strengths and weaknesses that would otherwise be masked in a cohort analysis. It is anticipated that factor and cluster analytic studies will establish one or more common profiles of neuropsychological deficits in AN.

A Systematic Review of Central Coherence in Young People with Anorexia Nervosa

“…The ROCFT was used in 6 studies [21,22,24,[26][27][28]. The methods for scoring the ROCFT varied between studies with the most consistently used method of scoring was Booth's (2006) where by the order and style indices are calculated and contribute to a central coherence index (CCI).…”

“…The methods for scoring the ROCFT varied between studies with the most consistently used method of scoring was Booth's (2006) where by the order and style indices are calculated and contribute to a central coherence index (CCI). This method was adopted by four studies [21,22,24,27,28], is presented as two separate studies, as the AN sample was divided into two subgroups. The subgroups (hypo-perfusion and normal-perfusion) were based on neurobiological status reflecting results from a brain scan that measured regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF).…”

“…Five of these studies employed an AN and HC group. However two studies did not include HC groups [22,24]. All participants in the AN groups met the DSM-IV criteria for Anorexia Nervosa, with the exception of [25] …”

Clinical investigation of set-shifting subtypes in anorexia nervosa

“…First, altered set-shifting is very common in adults diagnosed with AN although it does not characterize all affected individuals (Rose et al, 2012). Second, the role of depression on neuropsychological performances remains unclear although a clarification of this issue would be much needed (Giel et al, 2012) also given its frequent comorbidity with AN (O'Brien and Vincent, 2003).…”

A systematic review of cognitive remediation therapy for anorexia nervosa ¿ development, current state and implications for future research and clinical practice

“…However, as all current RCTs are oriented towards adult patients, we still know little about the intervention's potential in terms of efficacy in younger AN populations. Further, as many recent studies fail to detect neuropsychological impairment in adolescent AN patients [12,40,[77][78][79][80][81], it might be timely to consider other components than neuropsychological performance when assessing the effect of CRT in this patient group, and to learn from recent results suggesting that CRT is more beneficent for those struggling with cognitive weaknesses than in those who perform within the norms [57]. For young AN patients, one might suggest revisiting one of the original aims of the intervention; preparation for subsequent treatment [25,61], but also to pay attention to results recently surfaced such as attrition reduction [59] and enhancing the effectiveness of concurrent treatments [57].…”