Antipsychotic agents in the treatment of anorexia nervosa: neuropsychopharmacologic rationale and evidence from controlled trials.

Abstract

The search for an effective psychopharmacologic strategy in the treatment of anorexia nervosa (AN) has been elusive for decades and has run the gamut from reserpine to typical antipsychotics, to lithium, to tetrahydrocannabinol, to growth hormone, to anticonvulsants, to antidepressants, to atypical antipsychotics. Only recently has there arisen a potential "diamond in the rough" in the form of the atypical antipsychotic agent, olanzapine, which, in four randomized clinical trials, has shown superiority to placebo (two studies), chlorpromazine (one study), and aripiprazole (one study) in terms of weight gain and/or reduction in obsessional symptoms. The pharmacologic profile of olanzapine and other antipsychotic medications is discussed in light of the known pathophysiology of AN involving serotonin and dopamine systems, as well as brain-derived neurotrophic factor.

• Authors: Timothy D Brewerton
• Journal: Current psychiatry reports (Curr Psychiatry Rep) Vol. 14 Issue 4 Pg. 398-405 (Aug 2012) ISSN: 1535-1645 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 22628000 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Review)

Chemical References

• Antipsychotic Agents
• Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor
• Neurotransmitter Agents
• Serotonin
• Dopamine

Topics

• Anorexia Nervosa (drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Antipsychotic Agents (pharmacology, therapeutic use)
• Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (physiology)
• Dopamine (physiology)
• Humans
• Neurotransmitter Agents (pharmacology)
• Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
• Serotonin (physiology)
• Synaptic Transmission (drug effects)