Cp. Szabo et Mjt. Blanche, HOSPITALIZED ANOREXICS - A PRELIMINARY EVALUATION OF AN INPATIENT PROGRAM, South African medical journal, 88(3), 1998, pp. 312
Objective. To establish the range and extent of psychological improvem
ent during the course of inpatient treatment for anorexia nervosa. Des
ign. A prospective study, measuring change along specific parameters o
f psychological functioning and nutritional status over time. Setting.
A specialist inpatient facility for the treatment of eating disorders
. Subjects. 15 randomly selected patients, diagnosed with anorexia ner
vosa, who completed the programme. Outcome measures. Body mass index (
BMI); Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI); Beck Depression Inventory (BDI
). Results. Significant improvement was achieved in respect of nutriti
onal status, as well as psychological and emotional functioning. Chang
e in nutritional status was not specifically correlated with these imp
rovements. However, discharge nutritional status was significantly cor
related with a number of psychological and behavioural characteristics
associated with anorexia as measured by the EDI. It was also found th
at discharge nutritional status was positively correlated with mood st
atus as measured by the BDI. Conclusions. The study highlights the bro
ad range of parameters that improve within the context of a cognitive
behavioural inpatient treatment programme. Inpatient treatment should
not be regarded purely as a weight restoring process.