The outcomes of the most common treatments for eating disorders (EDs), particularly anorexia and bulimia, are unsatisfactory. Relapses and dropouts are particularly frequent and contribute to chronicity, currently estimated around 30-40% of cases, which increases the severity of these disorders, making the treatment more complex and the economic burden unbearable.
Most treatment approaches integrate medical-pharmacological interventions with cognitive-behavioral therapy for the patient. Family-based treatments have shown better results compared to other models, but they still fall short of the expectations set by the clinicians who developed them. Reviews and studies analyzing the current state of treatments consistently highlight the need for improved and alternative therapies for these disorders. There has been a profound evolution in eating disorders (EDs), particularly anorexia and bulimia, over the past fifty years. Changes include the onset of symptoms at younger ages and the spread of these disorders to many non-Western countries. These shifts are among the most well-documented developments in the field.
Anorexia nervosa - restrictive-type (AN-R) has comparatively decreased and seems to cross over (40 to 70%) to binging and purging behaviors rapidly, bulimia appears to be greatly increased, and co-morbidity with other psychopathologies, including personality disorders presents to be frequent, especially for bulimia and binge eating. The clinical picture and long-term outcomes are consequently worsened.
The co-morbidity between eating disorders and self-harming among adolescents is receiving increasing attention. Recent metanalyses found that Non Suicidal Self Injury (NSSI) peaks to 35% of the patients affected by EDs, while the lifetime prevalence in the general population is 16 %. Moreover, the highest prevalence of NSSI (42 %) is among patients with AN -binge eating/purging type. Together with the unsatisfactory results of the most popular treatments, these transformations in eating disorders make it even more necessary to develop new lines of research and to rethink the treatment of these psychopathologies.
This Research Topic welcomes empirical research and theoretical contributions exploring the links between different EDs and family dynamics and identity characteristics. In addition, the call solicits contributions on the link between EDs and NSSI. New models of intervention that give centrality to psychotherapy and tailored interventions are welcome. Authors are invited to contribute with quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies, in addition to single cases, theoretical models, and therapeutic approaches.
Themes of interest include (but are not limited to):
• Family dynamics and ED and NSSI
• Links between EDs and NSSI
• Family patterns linked with the transition from AN-R to binging and purging behaviors and NSSI
• Personality characteristics in different ED and with, or without, co-morbidity with NSSI
• Verbal and nonverbal communication between ED patients and their families and the therapeutic team
• The therapeutic relationship with ED patients and their families
• Meaning-making in therapeutic conversations with ED patients and their families
• Cross-cultural and gender differences in EDs and NSSI
Keywords:
Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia, Non Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI)
Important Note:
All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
The outcomes of the most common treatments for eating disorders (EDs), particularly anorexia and bulimia, are unsatisfactory. Relapses and dropouts are particularly frequent and contribute to chronicity, currently estimated around 30-40% of cases, which increases the severity of these disorders, making the treatment more complex and the economic burden unbearable.
Most treatment approaches integrate medical-pharmacological interventions with cognitive-behavioral therapy for the patient. Family-based treatments have shown better results compared to other models, but they still fall short of the expectations set by the clinicians who developed them. Reviews and studies analyzing the current state of treatments consistently highlight the need for improved and alternative therapies for these disorders. There has been a profound evolution in eating disorders (EDs), particularly anorexia and bulimia, over the past fifty years. Changes include the onset of symptoms at younger ages and the spread of these disorders to many non-Western countries. These shifts are among the most well-documented developments in the field.
Anorexia nervosa - restrictive-type (AN-R) has comparatively decreased and seems to cross over (40 to 70%) to binging and purging behaviors rapidly, bulimia appears to be greatly increased, and co-morbidity with other psychopathologies, including personality disorders presents to be frequent, especially for bulimia and binge eating. The clinical picture and long-term outcomes are consequently worsened.
The co-morbidity between eating disorders and self-harming among adolescents is receiving increasing attention. Recent metanalyses found that Non Suicidal Self Injury (NSSI) peaks to 35% of the patients affected by EDs, while the lifetime prevalence in the general population is 16 %. Moreover, the highest prevalence of NSSI (42 %) is among patients with AN -binge eating/purging type. Together with the unsatisfactory results of the most popular treatments, these transformations in eating disorders make it even more necessary to develop new lines of research and to rethink the treatment of these psychopathologies.
This Research Topic welcomes empirical research and theoretical contributions exploring the links between different EDs and family dynamics and identity characteristics. In addition, the call solicits contributions on the link between EDs and NSSI. New models of intervention that give centrality to psychotherapy and tailored interventions are welcome. Authors are invited to contribute with quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies, in addition to single cases, theoretical models, and therapeutic approaches.
Themes of interest include (but are not limited to):
• Family dynamics and ED and NSSI
• Links between EDs and NSSI
• Family patterns linked with the transition from AN-R to binging and purging behaviors and NSSI
• Personality characteristics in different ED and with, or without, co-morbidity with NSSI
• Verbal and nonverbal communication between ED patients and their families and the therapeutic team
• The therapeutic relationship with ED patients and their families
• Meaning-making in therapeutic conversations with ED patients and their families
• Cross-cultural and gender differences in EDs and NSSI
Keywords:
Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia, Non Suicidal Self-Injury (NSSI)
Important Note:
All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.