Intracranial hypertension may increase disordered eating in youth

Young people with intracranial hypertension had an increased prevalence of disordered eating behaviors, according to study results published in Pediatric Neurology.

“Several pathophysiologic mechanisms have been offered to explain how obesity, as well as weight gain in nonobese individuals, contribute to the genesis of [intracranial hypertension (IIH)],” Itay Tokatly Latzer, MD, of the Pediatric Neurology Institute at Dana-Dwek Children’s Hospital in Israel, and colleagues wrote. “Correspondingly, obesity has also been identified as one of the independent risk factors for the development of [disordered eating behaviors].

“Nonetheless, despite one report of an increased risk of binge eating disorder in adults with IIH, the specific relationship between IIH and [disordered eating behaviors] has not been investigated in depth, especially not in the pediatric population,” they added.

Researchers aimed to elucidate the prevalence and predictors of disordered eating behaviors among individuals with IIH aged 8 to 25 years. They included responses from 53 individuals with IIH and 106 healthy controls to a self-rating survey comprised of the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale and the Eating Attitude Test-26 that evaluated the presence of disordered eating behaviors.

Results showed a significantly higher prevalence of disordered eating behaviors among participants with IIH (P < .001). Participants with IIH and disordered eating behaviors had higher risk for longer treatment periods (OR = 1.07; 95% CI, 1.02-1.41) and having lost a significant amount of weight during treatment (OR = 9.06; 95% CI, 1.3-62.9). The IIH group had higher prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress than the control group (P = .004), which were linked to disordered eating behaviors among these individuals (P = .01).

“Caregivers should have increased awareness and implement active screening of [disordered eating behaviors] both at the time of the initial management and as part of the ongoing follow-up,” Latzer and colleagues wrote. “This is of paramount importance to potentially prevent the consequential evolution into full-blown [eating disorders].

“A multidisciplinary team approach consisting of a neurologist, an ophthalmologist, a psychologist, a dietitian and an adolescent specialist is warranted in the treatment of individuals with IIH,” they added.