title: Somatic problems and self-injurious behaviour 18 years after teenage-onset anorexia nervosa.
abstract: The aim of this study was to study long-term outcome of physical health and self-injurious behaviour (SIB) in anorexia nervosa (AN). Fifty-one adolescent-onset AN cases, originally recruited after community screening, and 51 matched controls (COMP) were interviewed regarding somatic problems and SIB and physically examined 18 years after AN onset, at mean age 32 years. Six individuals had an eating disorder (ED). No one had died. The AN group weighed less than the COMP group. The frequency of somatic problems did not differ between groups. Dental enamel lesions and shorter than expected stature occurred only in the AN group. Dysdiadochokinesis was overrepresented in the AN group and age of AN onset was lower among those with the neurological deficit. Severe SIB occurred only in the AN group, predominantly during adolescence. To conclude, somatic problems were common in both groups. Most individuals in the AN group had recovered from their ED, but weight revealed a persistent restricted eating behaviour.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Gillberg Neuropsychiatry Centre, University of Gothenburg, Göteborg, Sweden. elisabet.wentz@vgregion.se
authors.forename: Elisabet
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wentz
authors.forename: I Carina
authors.initials: IC
authors.lastname: Gillberg
authors.forename: Henrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Anckarsäter
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gillberg
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Råstam
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D000856:Anorexia Nervosa / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001827:Body Height / Q000502:physiology; D003743:Dental Enamel / Q000503:physiopathology; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D009069:Movement Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D016728:Self-Injurious Behavior / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D013997:Time Factors; D014077:Tooth Erosion / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology