Deep Brain Stimulation for Anorexia Nervosa

2013-05-04 -corpuscallosum

In Toronto, Canada six women were treated for anorexia nervosa with deep brain stimulation. They had a long period of many years of unsuccessful conventional management. Their average BMI were 11 to 15 in the years before the study.

The electrodes were placed just beneath the corpus callosum.

Complications
One woman had a self limiting panick attack during the procedure. One developed a cardiac air embolus that resolved within 5 minutes during the procedure. One patient had a seizure after the operation when switching the device on. After switching it off and restarting again after one week seizures didn’t reappear.

Three out of the six women gained weight and had an improved quality of live. The BMIs increased from 11.1 to 21, 14.2 to 16, and 15.1 to 20.

The pilot was designed to assess safety, not effectiveness. The authors judge deep brain stimulation to be safe enough for further evaluation