The neuropsychological profile of adolescent males with anorexia nervosa – a case series

ABSTRACT

The identification of neurocognitive difficulties in females with anorexia nervosa (AN) has emphasised the importance of the potential neurodevelopmental factors of this illness, and the need for treatments which are tailored to ameliorate these challenges. However, these difficulties do not seem to be present in all cases, and it is unknown whether males with AN display a similar neuropsychological profile to that of females. The aim of the current case series was to explore the neuropsychological profile of adolescent males with a diagnosis of AN. The participants were selected from a database of patients with eating disorders – out of which ten were males with an AN diagnosis, mean age 15 years and 9 months. Mean BMI percentile for age was 4.5 (SD = 8.5). Participants were assessed using the neuropsychological test battery ‘the Ravello Profile’, and psychometric measures to assess eating disorder psychopathology, anxiety, obsessive–compulsive symptoms and depression. The patients displayed a broad spectrum of neuropsychological strengths and weaknesses, and a discrepancy between the visual and verbal performance was apparent for the majority of the participants. The current study provides a valuable starting point for research of this highly understudied group.

Keywords:

• Neuropsychology
• males
• adolescents
• anorexia nervosa
• eating disorders

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the participants for their involvement and dedication, and the reviewers for their helpful comments.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by a grant from Health South-East [grant number 29501508].