Facts and myths regarding treatment with antipsychotics in anorexia nervosa
Jolanta Rabe-Jabłońska

Recent reviews of research and meta-analyses indicate that there is no evidence of the efficacy of antipsychotics in treatment of anorexia nervosa. The authors of all available guidebooks and standards of treatment of anorexia nervosa warn against inclusion of psychotropic drugs when the BMI amounts to <15 or there are somatic complications of eating restrictions. Furthermore, emphasized is unnecessary risk of hasty decisions in the case of concomitant symptoms of other mental disorders, because they may subside with increased body mass or result from patients’ personality traits. Considered should always be the possible occurrence of adverse symptoms of applied pharmacotherapy, especially within the circulatory system and prolactin secretion disorders. The use of antipsychotics may be considered in special cases of patients resistant to treatment, with extremely persistent, at times absurd and uncorrectable convictions about one’s body size and shape, and eating habits. Yet it should be emphasized that too fast body mass gain which sometimes occurs after therapy with some of these medicinal drugs, may appear a disadvantageous factor enhancing the fear of the body mass change in patients who are not psychologically prepared for so fast changes and consequently cease the progress achieved due to psychological therapy. Changes in prolactin secretion, occurring due to the use of certain antipsychotics, may inhibit the return of correct levels of sex hormones in women, and menstruation, and increase osteoporosis which is almost always present in some of the chronically emaciated patients.