ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: There is little effective psychopharmacological treatment for individuals with eating disorders who struggle with pervasive, severe affective and behavioral dysregulation. METHODS: This pilot open series evaluated lamotrigine, a mood stabilizer, in the treatment of patients with eating disorders who did not respond adequately to antidepressant medications. Nine women with anorexia nervosa- or bulimia nervosa-spectrum eating disorders in partial hospital or intensive outpatient dialectical behavior therapy (DBT)-based eating disorder treatment took lamotrigine for 147 ± 79 days (mean final dose = 161.1 ± 48.6 mg/day). Participants completed standardized self-report measures of emotion dysregulation and impulsivity after lamotrigine initiation and approximately biweekly thereafter. Mood and eating disorder symptomatology were measured at lamotrigine initiation and at time of final assessment. RESULTS: Lamotrigine and concurrent DBT were associated with large reductions in self-reported affective and behavioral dysregulation (ps < 0.01). Eating disorder and mood symptoms decreased moderately. CONCLUSIONS: Although our findings are limited by the confounds inherent in an open series, lamotrigine showed initial promise in reducing emotional instability and behavioral impulsivity in severely dysregulated eating-disordered patients. These preliminary results support further investigation of lamotrigine for eating disorders in rigorous controlled trials.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Some patients with symptoms of binge eating and purging are successfully treated with specific serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), but others experience only partial or no benefit. Significant affect dysregulation and poor impulse control may be characteristics that limit responsiveness. METHOD: We report on the treatment of five patients with bulimia nervosa (BN), anorexia nervosa-binge/purge type (AN-B/P) or eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS), using the anticonvulsant lamotrigine after inadequate response to SSRIs. RESULTS: Following addition of lamotrigine to an antidepressant in four cases, and switch from an antidepressant to lamotrigine in one case, patients experienced substantial improvement in mood reactivity and instability, impulsive drives and behaviors, and eating-disordered symptoms. DISCUSSION: These findings raise the possibility that lamotrigine, either as monotherapy or as an augmenting agent to antidepressants, may be useful in patients who binge eat and purge, and have significant affect dysregulation with poor impulse control.
Subject(s)
Anorexia Nervosa/drug therapy , Anticonvulsants/therapeutic use , Binge-Eating Disorder/drug therapy , Bulimia Nervosa/drug therapy , Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders/drug therapy , Triazines/therapeutic use , Adolescent , Affect/drug effects , Body Mass Index , Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders/prevention & control , Drug Therapy, Combination , Female , Humans , Lamotrigine , Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors/therapeutic use , Treatment Outcome , Young AdultABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: There has been much interest in the use of atypical antipsychotics in anorexia nervosa (AN). However, newer, more weight-neutral medications have not been studied in AN, and there are no reports of the use of antipsychotics in bulimia nervosa (BN). METHOD: We report on the treatment of eight patients (five with AN and three with BN) with aripiprazole for time periods of four months to more than three years. RESULTS: All individuals had reduced distress around eating, fewer obsessional thoughts about food, weight and body image, significant lessening of eating-disordered behaviors, and gradual weight restoration where appropriate. Depression, generalized anxiety, and cognitive flexibility improved as well. DISCUSSION: In summary, these findings support the need to perform controlled trials of aripiprazole in AN and BN.
