Early Response to an Integrated Family and Adolescent-Focussed Treatment for Anorexia Nervosa and Atypical Anorexia...

Recovery rates for adolescent anorexia nervosa (AN) remain poor, requiring creativity within the field to explore alternative treatment options. One novel, evidence-informed approach integrates both family/parent and individual adolescent-focussed treatment components, through an individualised developmental lens. This study aimed to offer preliminary insights on early response to Adolescent and Parent Treatment (APT) in terms of 8-week weight trajectory.

A naturalistic, repeated measures design was employed. Twenty-four adolescents with AN or atypical AN receiving APT as standard care were identified from a specialist private outpatient clinic. Anthropometrics and psychometrics were collected at baseline, with repeat anthropometrics 8-week later.

A significant increase in weight was found from baseline to 8-week follow-up (2.57 kg; p < 0.001), with a large effect size (d = 1.22). No associations were found between baseline clinical features and degree of weight recovery.

This small, exploratory study provides preliminary support for meaningful early weight recovery in APT, at a similar trajectory to that found in current first line treatment. This suggests little consequence to early weight recovery goals when integrating individual psychological support with the adolescent alongside parent-lead re-feeding, from the start of treatment. Further empirical investigation of the treatment package is indicated.