Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder primarily affecting young women and marked by an extreme fear of becoming overweight. This fear leads to excessive dieting to the point of serious ill-health and sometimes death. The condition is hard to treat successfully, largely due to the the high rate of relapse. 30% to 50% of patients will require rehospitalization within 1 year of discharge after successful weight restoration.
A large number of patients with anorexia nervosa receive antidepressant medications as an intervention to prevent relapse. One common drug prescribed for this purpose is Fluoxetine (Prozac). In a new study, researchers compared fluoxetine with a placebo to determine the rate of relapse and behavioral recovery following initial treatment for anorexia nervosa.
Their results indicate that the common practice of prescribing antidepressant medication is unlikely to provide substantial benefit for most patients with anorexia nervosa, either when they are underweight or immediately upon weight restoration.
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