Why is the brain important in eating disorders? This ground-breaking new book describes how increasingly sophisticated neuroscientific approaches are revealing much about the role of the brain in eating disorders. Even more importantly, it discusses how underlying brain abnormalities and dysfunction may contribute to the development and help in the treatment of these serious disorders.
- Neuropsychological studies show impairments in specific cognitive functions, especially executive and visuo-spatial skills.
- Neuroimaging studies show structural and functional abnormalities, including cortical atrophy and neural circuit abnormalities, the latter appearing to be playing a major part in the development of anorexia nervosa.
- Neurochemistry studies show dysregulation within neurotransmitter systems, with effects upon the modulation of feeding, mood, anxiety, neuroendocrine control, metabolic rate, sympathetic tone and temperature.
The first chapter, by an eating disorders clinician, explains the importance of a neuroscience perspective for clinicians. This is followed by an overview of the common eating disorders, then chapters on what we know of them from studies of neuroimaging, neuropsychology and neurochemistry. The mysterious phenomenon of body image disturbance is then described and explained from a neuroscience perspective. The next two chapters focus on neuroscience models of eating disorders, the first offering an overview and the second a new and comprehensive explanatory model of anorexia nervosa. The following two chapters offer a clinical perspective, with attention on the implications of a neuroscience perspective for patients and their families, the second providing details of clinical applications of neuroscience understanding. The final chapter looks to the future.
This book succinctly reviews current knowledge about all these aspects of eating disorder neuroscience and explores the implications for treatment. It will be of great interest to all clinicians (psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, dieticians, paediatricians, physicians, physiotherapists) working in eating disorders, as well as to neuroscience researchers.
Contents
1 Why clinicians should love neuroscience: the clinical relevance of contemporary knowledge - 1.1 Introduction
- 1.2 The legacy of mind–body dualism
- 1.3 Free will and determinism
- 1.4 Clinical implications
- 1.5 Restriction of energy intake and increase in energy output
- 1.6 Non-eating-related concerns
- 1.7 In-the-beginning questions: the problem of aetiology in eating disorders
- 1.8 The temporal, ‘vertical’ aetiological dimension
- 1.9 The spatial, ‘horizontal’ aetiological dimension 1
- 1.10 The importance of a neuroscientific aetiological framework
- 1.11 Conclusion
- References
- 2.1 Introduction
- 2.2 Clinical descriptions
- 2.3 Comorbidity
- 2.4 Epidemiology
- 2.5 Aetiology and risk factors
- 2.6 Treatment
- 2.7 Course and outcome
- 2.8 Conclusion
- References
- 3.1 Introduction
- 3.2 Structural imaging
- 3.3 Functional imaging
- 3.4 Conclusion
- References
- 4.1 Introduction
- 4.2 Intellectual functioning
- 4.3 Attention
- 4.4 Memory
- 4.5 Visuospatial processing
- 4.6 Executive functioning
- 4.7 Conclusion
- References
- 5.1 Introduction
- 5.2 Five aims
- 5.3 Five propositions relating neurochemistry to the field of eating disorders
- 5.4 Five implications of these propositions
- 5.5 Five directions for future research
- 5.6 Conclusion
- Acknowledgement
- References
- 6.1 Introduction
- 6.2 What is body image?
- 6.3 How is body image constructed in the brain?
- 6.4 Body-image disturbance in eating disorders
- 6.5 The neuroscience of body-image distortion in anorexia nervosa
- 6.6 Conclusion
- References
- 7.1 Introduction
- 7.2 Conceptual models in anorexia nervosa
- 7.3 Conclusion
- References
- 8.1 Introduction
- 8.2 The model
- 8.3 Critical appraisal
- 8.4 Clinical implications
- 8.5 Conclusion
- Acknowledgements
- References
- 9.1 Introduction
- 9.2 The emergence of neurobiological models
- 9.3 Anorexia nervosa and illness representations
- 9.4 Impact of a neurobiological model on families’ understandings of anorexia nervosa
- 9.5 Conclusion
- References
- 10.1 Introduction
- 10.2 Psychopharmacology
- 10.3 The educational context
- 10.4 Psychological treatment
- 10.5 Conclusion
- References
- 11.1 Introduction
- 11.2 Cause
- 11.3 Assessment and diagnosis
- 11.4 Treatment
- 11.5 Prevention
- 11.6 Future directions
- 11.7 Conclusion
- References
Index
About the Author
- Bryan Lask FRCPsych, FAED, M.Phil, MB,. BS, Hon Consultant and Emeritus Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK; Research Director, Ellern Mede Service for Eating Disorders, London, UK; Visiting Professor, Oslo University Hospital, Norway.
- Ian Frampton BA(Hons) D.Clin.Psych. Dip.Clin.Neuropsych. C Psychol., Hon Consultant Psychologist, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK; Visiting Research Consultant, Regional Eating Disorders Service, Oslo University Hospital, Norway.
Product Details
- Hardcover: 254 pages
- Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (October 18, 2011)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0470670037
- ISBN-13: 978-0470670033
- Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 0.8 x 9.7 inches
List Price: $92.95