ReviewThe mental health clinician2018
Role of antidepressants in the treatment of adults with anorexia nervosa.
Review in The mental health clinician, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
34 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 81 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Efficacy of Pharmacological Treatment of Depression in Anorexia Nervosa and Underweight Patients: A Systematic Review.European eating disorders review : the journal of the Eating Disorders Association · 2026Pooled it
- Integrated multi-omics and functional analyses reveal a GDCA-TGR5-mediated immunometabolic signature in anorexia nervosa.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2026Article
- Clinical Trajectories Associated with Pharmacological Treatment Patterns in Female Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa: A 12-Month Retrospective Study in Italian Real-World Clinical Practice.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Toward a framework for psychedelic clinical trials in adolescents.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2026Review
- Medication use in severe anorexia nervosa: a Danish register-based study.BMJ mental health · 2026Article
- Approved and Pipeline Pharmacological Interventions for Eating Disorders (2010-2025): 15 Years of Progress (or Lack Thereof).CNS drugs · 2026Review
- An Overview of Severe Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Hyponatremia in patients with severe anorexia nervosa was associated with more severe and longer duration of disease.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Patterns of antidepressant prescribing around pregnancy: a descriptive analysis using Clinical Practice Research Datalink GOLD.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
- Overlooked and undertreated: gendered ageism in primary care management of eating disorders.International journal for equity in health · 2025Article
- Ketamine for treatment resistant depression in individuals with eating disorders: a comparison study.Journal of eating disorders · 2025Article
- Providing alternative fuel for the brain in anorexia nervosa: a review of the literature on ketones and their effects on metabolism and the brain.Translational psychiatry · 2025Review
- Pharmacotherapy Considerations in Underweight Patients with Anorexia Nervosa: A Narrative Review.Clinical drug investigation · 2025Review
- Improvement in depressive symptoms in a patient with severe and enduring anorexia nervosa and comorbid major depressive disorder using psychotherapy-assisted IV ketamine : a case report.Journal of eating disorders · 2024Article
- Established and emerging treatments for eating disorders.Trends in molecular medicine · 2024Review
- WAY-208466, a 5-HTNeuroscience applied · 2024Article
- At the Crossroads between Eating Disorders and Body Dysmorphic Disorders-The Case of Bigorexia Nervosa.Brain sciences · 2023Review
- Oral health and individuals with a lived experience of an eating disorder: a qualitative study.Journal of eating disorders · 2023Article
- A retrospective study of pharmacological treatment in anorexia nervosa: 6-month and 12-month follow-up.BMC psychiatry · 2023Review
- Common practical questions - and answers - at the British Association for Psychopharmacology child and adolescent psychopharmacology course.Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionAnorexia nervosa (AN) is a severe psychiatric disorder that is difficult to treat and is associated with frequent relapses and high mortality rates. Psychiatric symptomatology (eg, depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder/behaviors) are common comorbidities. This review provides current information about safety and efficacy of antidepressant therapy for management of AN in adults.
methodsA literature review of randomized controlled trials, open-label studies, and case reports with adults or adults/adolescents was conducted. PubMed and Medline were searched using anorexia management and treatment, antidepressants, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, and mirtazapine in AN, relapse prevention in AN, and psychotropic medications in AN.
resultsThe role and utility of antidepressants in AN were published in double-blind, placebo-controlled studies; open-label trials; and a retrospective study. Antidepressants should not be used as sole therapy for AN although their use for confounding symptomatology makes discerning efficacy difficult as they are given together with other therapies. Neurobiological changes due to starvation and AN itself complicate results interpretation. For safety, tricyclic antidepressants and monoamine oxidase inhibitors are not recommended, and bupropion is contraindicated. Use of SSRIs during acute treatment lacks efficacy. Use of SSRIs-primarily fluoxetine and to some extent citalopram, sertraline, or mirtazapine-may aid in relapse prevention and improvement of psychiatric symptomatology in weight-restored anorexic patients. DISCUSSION: Health care professionals should use clinical judgment regarding fluoxetine or possibly citalopram, sertraline or mirtazapine as adjunctive treatment to psychotherapy for relapse prevention, improvement of depressive and anxiety symptoms, and/or obsessive-compulsive behaviors unresolved with nutritional rehabilitation and psychotherapy.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.