Prevalence, Heritability, and Prospective Risk Factors for Anorexia Nervosa

Abstract

The prevalence of AN was higher in both male and female participants born after 1945. Individuals who survive AN and who no longer have body mass indexes in the AN range appear to be at lower risk for the development of overweight. Prospectively assessed neuroticism was associated with the subsequent development of AN, the liability to which is under considerable genetic influence.

Assessing the heritability of anorexia nervosa symptoms using a marginal maximal likelihood approach

“…However, the current estimate is within the (albeit wide) CI obtained in the Bulik et al study. The use of sum scores in previous studies (e.g., Bulik et al, 2006), which assessed contributions to the variance of AN at a diagnostic level, may also account for differing results. Heterogeneity of items assessing a given trait, which is not accounted for in models using sum scores, can bias parameter estimates .…”

“…However, examination of genetic and environmental contributions to AN has proven challenging, because of the relative rarity of the disorder, with prevalence estimates among women in the United States and Western Europe approximately 1% (Hoek & van Hoeken, 2003;Hudson, Hiripi, Pope, & Kessler, 2007). In the only twin study to date to examine the heritability of the narrowly-defined DSM-IV AN diagnosis, Bulik et al (2006) obtained a heritability estimate of .56 (confidence interval [CI]: 0.00-0.87). Bulik et al's findings also suggested that unshared environment significantly influences AN symptomatology (i.e., unshared environment accounted for about one-third of the variance in AN).…”

Altered Insula Response to Taste Stimuli in Individuals Recovered from Restricting-Type Anorexia Nervosa

“…In part, chronicity and the frequent need for hospitalization are a consequence of the limited efficacy of current pharmacologic and psychological treatments. While several lines of evidence implicate genetically mediated neurobiological factors as contributing to the development of AN (Bailer and Kaye, 2003;Bulik et al, 2006), the lack of understanding of the pathophysiology of this illness has hindered the development of more effective treatments. For example, AN is characterized (APA, 2000) as an eating disorder (ED).…”

The association of anxiety disorders and obsessive compulsive personality disorder with anorexia nervosa: Evidence from a family study with discussion of nosological and neurodevelopmental implications

“…Second, anxiety disorders among individuals with AN usually begin before signs of dietary preoccupation and weight loss, 2 and heritable traits linked to anxiety proneness (e.g., neuroticism, harm avoidance, and low novelty seeking) 3,4 are characteristic of the premorbid state in persons who develop AN. 5,6 Third, subthreshold features of anxiety often persist long after recovery of normal body weight. 7 Fourth, several twin studies [8][9][10][11] have produced evidence of a modest genetic correlation between eating disorders and certain anxiety and depressive disorders, suggesting they comprise a spectrum of inherited phenotypes.…”