Neurobiology, Temperament and new approaches in the treatment of adult Anorexia Nervosa

Abstract

Chronic course, relapses, as well as low medication efficacy and partial results of psychotherapy in patients with Anorexia Nervosa (AN), remain challenging clinicians. The challenge is even bigger in adults patients with severe and enduring AN (patients 25 years of age or older, with a chronic course of the illness). The knowledge about neurobiology and the role of temperament traits in the onset and maintenance of symptoms across the time, are being taken as a base for design and implementation of new treatments in adults with AN. Our objective was to do a narrative review of the literature published in the last years on the neurobiological bases of AN, the characteristic temperament traits of patients with AN, and finally how this body of knowledge is being integrated into the treatment of traits in adult patients with this illness. It is concluded that even if the gap between research and clinical applications of these findings continue to be too broad, there are promising advances in the field.