BODY-IMAGE DISTURBANCES IN ANOREXIA-NERVO SA PATIENTS 12 YEAR AFTER CLINICAL PRESENTATION

Of 103 patients with anorexia nervosa, 50 women and 5 men were followe d-up on the average 11.8 year after clinical presentation with a diffe rentiated method for body awareness according to Askevold. A considera ble number of women with body image disturbances, however, largely cor responded to those of a healthy female control group. Both the male an orexia nervosa patients and the healthy male controls had normal findi ngs. Applying to touch-induced stimulus, the body assessment indices o nly increased in former male anorexia patients but remained the same i n female anorexia patients, while they clearly normalized in the sense of a realistic assessment in the two healthy control groups. Surprisi ngly, there was only little correlation between the visually measured body perception disorder and the self (EDI) and expert assessment (Sia nex) at the time of follow-up (exception: the EDI scale 3 [dissatisfac tion with one's own body). The global expert rating of body image dist urbances at clinical presentation was important as a predictor for the severity of anorexia nervosa after 12 years. The findings were discus sed under methodological and clinical aspects.