The early onset cases of anorexia nervosa, which occur in children between the ages of 8 and 14, pose a serious challenge to eating disorders professionals. The interdisciplinary approach to this eating disorder is a prerequisite for timely development of therapeutic strategy and individual approach to the complex needs of the child and family. This case report presents an early onset of anorexia nervosa in a 12-year-old outpatient girl. The history of the case is described, with the stages of awareness of the problem; seeking professional help; nutritional rehabilitation; psychiatric and psychological help that the child and the family receive. A plan for managing the clinical consequences of weight loss, risk assessment tools, as well as the possibilities of a family-oriented approach in providing psychological support are presented. The roles of the various specialists involved in the case and their collaborative work in progress are discussed.
Vahia VN. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders 5: A quick glance. Indian J Psychiatry. 2013 Jul;55(3):220-3. doi: 10.4103/0019-5545.117131.
Galmiche M, Déchelotte P, Lambert G, Tavolacci MP. Prevalence of eating disorders over the 2000-2018 period: a systematic literature review. Am J Clin Nutr. 2019;109(5):1402-13. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/nqy342.
Herpertz-Dahlmann B, Dahmen B. Children in need-diagnostics, epidemiology, treatment and outcome of early onset anorexia nervosa. Nutrients. 2019;11(8):1932. doi: 10.3390/nu11081932.
Guinhut M, Melchior JC, Godart N, Hanachi M. Extremely severe anorexia nervosa: Hospital course of 354 adult patients in a clinical nutrition-eating disorders-unit. Clin Nutr. 2021;40(4):1954-65. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2020.09.011.
Arcelus J, Mitchell AJ, Wales J, Nielsen S. Mortality rates in patients with anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders. A meta-analysis of 36 studies. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2011;68(7):724-31. doi: 10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.74.
Chin SNM, Laverty AA, Filippidis FT. Trends and correlates of unhealthy dieting behaviours among adolescents in the United States, 1999-2013. BMC Public Health. 2018;18(1):439. doi: 10.1186/s12889-018-5348-2.
Robinson, P, Rhys Jones W. MARSIPAN: management of really sick patients with anorexia nervosa. BJ Psych Advances. 2018;24(1):20–32. doi: 10.1192/bja.2017.2.
http://www.marsipan.org.uk [Accessed online at 30.03.2022]
Email this article (Login required) 
