Bulimia from a gynecological view: hormonal changes

Prevalence and Etiology of Eating Disorders in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Scoping Review

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine-metabolic disorder affecting females across the lifespan. Eating disorders (EDs) are psychiatric conditions that may impact the development of PCOS and comorbidities including obesity, metabolic syndrome, and type 2 diabetes. The aim of this scoping review was to determine the prevalence of EDs and disordered eating, and to review the etiology of EDs in PCOS. The review was conducted using search terms addressing PCOS, EDs, and disordered eating in databases, including PubMed, Scopus, PsycINFO, and CINAHL. Structured interviews, self-administered questionnaires, chart review, or self-reported diagnosis were used to identify EDs in 38 studies included in the review. The prevalence of any ED in those with PCOS ranged from 0% to 62%. Those with PCOS were 3-6-fold more likely to have an ED and higher odds ratios (ORs) of an elevated ED score compared with controls. In those with PCOS, 30% had a higher OR of bulimia nervosa and binge ED was 3-fold higher compared with controls. Studies were limited on anorexia nervosa and other specified feeding or ED (such as night eating syndrome) and these were not reported to be higher in PCOS. To our knowledge, no studies reported on avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder, rumination disorder, or pica in PCOS. Studies showed strong associations between overweight, body dissatisfaction, and disordered eating in PCOS. The etiologic development of EDs in PCOS remains unclear; however, psychological, metabolic, hypothalamic, and genetic factors are implicated. The prevalence of any ED in PCOS varied because of the use of different diagnostic and screening tools. Screening of all individuals with PCOS for EDs is recommended and high-quality studies on the prevalence, pathogenesis of specific EDs, relationship to comorbidities, and effective interventions to treat ED in those with PCOS are needed.

Disordered eating and eating disorders among women seeking fertility treatment: A systematic review

The purpose of this systematic review is to evaluate the prevalence of disordered eating and eating disorders among women seeking fertility treatment.Observational studies were searched in Ovid MEDLINE, Web of Science, Embase, and PsycInfo. Studies published prior to September 2020 when the search was conducted were considered. Inclusion criteria included (1) original and empirical research, (2) published in a peer-reviewed journal, and (3) reported on disordered eating among women seeking fertility treatment in the sample or reported on prevalence of eating disorders among women seeking fertility treatment in the sample. Independent screening of abstracts was conducted by two authors (LH and AH). Ten studies met the inclusion criteria. Sample size, study location, measures, and results for each study in this review were reported.Among women pursuing fertility treatment, rates of current eating disorders ranged from 0.5 to 16.7%, while past eating disorder prevalence rates ranged from 1.4 to 27.5%. Current anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa was reported by up to 2% and 10.3% of women, respectively, while history of anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa was reported by up to 8.5% and 3.3% of women, respectively. Binge eating disorder or other eating disorders were reported by up to 18.5% and 9.1% of women, respectively. Disordered eating pathology was endorsed by 1.6 to 48% of women seeking fertility treatment. Endorsement of pathological eating attitudes was generally higher among women seeking fertility treatment with current or past eating disorders as compared to community samples, with the exception of dietary restraint. Rates of current and past eating disorders are higher among women seeking fertility treatment than in the general population. Providers treating women with infertility should be cognizant of these prevalence rates and consider screening for eating pathology in their patients as this may contribute to their likelihood of successful conception and/or subsequent pregnancy outcomes.

Menstrual Disorders Related to Eating Disorders

Eating disorders (ED) are associated with multiple physical complications that strongly affect the physical health of these young and fragile patients and can also cause significant mortality, the highest among psychiatric pathologies. Among the various organic complications, albeit still little known, the gynecological implications, up to infertility, are very widespread. Among adolescent and adult patients, gynecological symptoms can be very widespread and range from menstrual irregularities to amenorrhea, from vaginitis to ovarian polycystosis, up to complications during the gestational phase and postpartum, in addition to the possible consequences on the unborn child. Among the most frequent and significant gynecological disorders in women with ED, there are menstrual irregularities that may occur with oligomenorrhea or even amenorrhea. , Although no longer part of the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for defining anorexia nervosa (AN), this symptom must be considered a very relevant event in the overall evaluation of young women and adolescents with eating disorders. Functional hypothalamic amenorrhea in ED patients is related to psychological distress, excessive exercise, disordered eating, or a combination of these factors, which results in suppression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis, and consequently, hypoestrogenism. This paper has the objective to summarize the causes and the mechanism underlying menstrual disorders and provide a better understanding of the correlation between the reproductive system and the mechanisms that regulate food intake and eating habits. In addition, early recognition of risk factors for eating disorders for gynecological implications can help put more accurate assessments of patients to prevent potentially fatal complications. The importance of the involvement of specialist gynecologists in the multidisciplinary team that has to follow patients with eating disorders is also discussed.

Increased odds of disordered eating in polycystic ovary syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis

PURPOSE

We aimed to identify the risk of eating disorders (ED) in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) compared to controls.

METHODS

We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies that included women with well-defined PCOS and controls and used validated ED screening/diagnostic tools to measure mean ED score, prevalence of abnormal ED scores, and/or prevalence of specific ED diagnoses such as bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder.

RESULTS

Eight studies, including 470 women with PCOS and 390 controls, met inclusion criteria for the systematic review. Meta-analysis of seven of those studies found that the odds of an abnormal ED score (OR 3.05; 95% CI 1.33, 6.99; four studies) and the odds of any ED diagnosis (OR 3.87; 95% CI 1.43, 10.49; four studies) were higher in women with PCOS compared to controls.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study suggests that women with PCOS are at increased odds of having abnormal ED scores and specific ED diagnoses. Given the potential implications of an ED on weight management strategies, our findings support routine screening for ED in this population.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level I, systematic review and meta-analysis.

Medical Complications of Eating Disorders in Youth

Eating disorders affect a significant number of individuals across the life span and are found among all demographic groups (including all genders, socioeconomic statuses, and ethnicities). They can cause malnutrition, which can have significant effects on every organ system in the body. Cardiovascular complications are particularly dangerous and cause eating disorders to have the highest mortality rate of all mental illnesses. This article outlines the medical assessment and treatment of malnutrition due to disordered eating.

So similar and so different: Circulating androgens and androgen origin in bulimic women

Hyper androgen state frequently can be diagnosed in bulimic women. Eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS) recognized as a less severe form of bulimia nervosa (BN). The objective of the study was to determine whether androgen levels and androgen origin differs in bulimic women compared to control subjects. Forty-six women with bulimia nervosa (BN), 31 with eating disorder not otherwise specified, purging type (EDNOS P) and 56 matched healthy controls were studied with respect to serum testosterone (T), 5alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT), sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), deyhydroepiahndrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) and luteinizing hormone (LH) and to ovarian morphology. Despite all groups had almost identical androgen and SHBG levels; there were differences in the origin of circulating T and DHT. Correlation analysis suggest major differences in the formation of circulating testosterone (T) and 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) with BN being more like the control subjects with peripheral formation from 4-androsterne-3,17-dione (A-4), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) and also from T. While in EDNOS group a possible direct ovarian T secretion and a DHEAS modulating action of androgens on pituitary gonadotropin secretion is present. The origin of circulating T and DHT differs between bulimics. Our findings do probably not reflect direct actions of circulating DHT on pituitary LH secretion in the women with EDNOS, but rather the effect of A-4, T via conversion to DHT in the central nervous system, indicating psych/endocrine differences between the two groups of bulimic women.

Sex differences in the physiology of eating

Hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis function fundamentally affects the physiology of eating. We review sex differences in the physiological and pathophysiological controls of amounts eaten in rats, mice, monkeys, and humans. These controls result from interactions among genetic effects, organizational effects of reproductive hormones (i.e., permanent early developmental effects), and activational effects of these hormones (i.e., effects dependent on hormone levels). Male-female sex differences in the physiology of eating involve both organizational and activational effects of androgens and estrogens. An activational effect of estrogens decreases eating 1) during the periovulatory period of the ovarian cycle in rats, mice, monkeys, and women and 2) tonically between puberty and reproductive senescence or ovariectomy in rats and monkeys, sometimes in mice, and possibly in women. Estrogens acting on estrogen receptor-α (ERα) in the caudal medial nucleus of the solitary tract appear to mediate these effects in rats. Androgens, prolactin, and other reproductive hormones also affect eating in rats. Sex differences in eating are mediated by alterations in orosensory capacity and hedonics, gastric mechanoreception, ghrelin, CCK, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), glucagon, insulin, amylin, apolipoprotein A-IV, fatty-acid oxidation, and leptin. The control of eating by central neurochemical signaling via serotonin, MSH, neuropeptide Y, Agouti-related peptide (AgRP), melanin-concentrating hormone, and dopamine is modulated by HPG function. Finally, sex differences in the physiology of eating may contribute to human obesity, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating. The variety and physiological importance of what has been learned so far warrant intensifying basic, translational, and clinical research on sex differences in eating.

The relationship between eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS) and officially recognized eating disorders: meta-analysis and implications for DSM

Eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS) is the most prevalent eating disorder (ED) diagnosis. In this meta-analysis, the authors aimed to inform Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders revisions by comparing the psychopathology of EDNOS with that of the officially recognized EDs: anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and binge eating disorder (BED). A comprehensive literature search identified 125 eligible studies (published and unpublished) appearing in the literature from 1987 to 2007. Random effects analyses indicated that whereas EDNOS did not differ significantly from AN and BED on eating pathology or general psychopathology, BN exhibited greater eating and general psychopathology than EDNOS. Moderator analyses indicated that EDNOS groups who met all diagnostic criteria for AN except for amenorrhea did not differ significantly from full syndrome cases. Similarly, EDNOS groups who met all criteria for BN or BED except for binge frequency did not differ significantly from full syndrome cases. Results suggest that EDNOS represents a set of disorders associated with substantial psychological and physiological morbidity. Although certain EDNOS subtypes could be incorporated into existing Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) categories, others-such as purging disorder and non-fat-phobic AN-may be best conceptualized as distinct syndromes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved).

The first epidemiology survey among Hungarian elite athletes: eating disorders, depression and risk factors

Az anorexia nervosa előfordulása magas az evészavarok szempontjából nagy kockázatú populációnak számító sportolók körében, amit anorexiaatlétika néven jegyez az irodalom. Célunk az evészavarok prevalenciájának felmérése a magyar élsportolók között.Betegek és módszerek:A 2008-ban megrendezésre kerülő olimpia előtt több magyarországi edzőtáborban kérdőíves vizsgálatot végeztünk: demográfiai és edzési adatok, anorexianervosa-felmérő teszt (ANIS) és bulimianervosa-felmérő kérdőív (BITE). Az adatokat SPSS programcsomag segítségével dolgoztuk fel.Eredmények:A különböző sportágakban (kajak-kenu, öttusa, kézilabda, kosárlabda, röplabda, súlyemelés) a 72 sportoló életkorátlaga 22±4,9 év. Testtömegindex-átlag (22,15±2,12 kg/m2) a normáltartományban. Tizenkettő (16,7%) klinikai anorexia nervosa és 5 (6,9%) klinikai bulimia nervosa prevalencia. Legalább egy kóros tünet 73,6%-ban fordult elő az egész populációt tekintve. A sportolók közel egyharmada (29,2%) több alkalommal is átélt mély depresszív hangulatot, de biztosan egy letargiás epizódról 27 (37,5%) sportoló számolhat be. A súlyemelő-, a röplabda- és az öttusasportág versenyzői voltak inkább érintettek.Következtetések:Az átlagpopulációhoz viszonyítva a sportolók körében közel négyszeres az evési attitűdök és a klinikai evészavarok előfordulási gyakorisága, ami korrelál a nemzetközi adatokkal. Kiemelkedő a depressziós tünet gyakorisága, amelynek háttértényezői további részletes vizsgálatokra sarkallnak.

Detrimental Psychological Outcomes Associated with Early Pubertal Timing in Adolescent Girls

Though often discussed as though it were a discrete event, puberty comprises one segment of a larger developmental continuum and is notable for rapid transformation across a multitude of domains. Research suggests that an earlier rate of pubertal maturation in girls correlates with a number of detrimental outcomes compared with on-time or later maturation. The present review synthesizes the research on negative psychological sequelae of early pubertal timing in adolescent girls. Emphasis is on three theoretical perspectives by which precocious development is believed to affect the emergence of adverse outcomes: biological, psychosocial, and selection effects.