Ideación suicida y conductas autolesivas en adolescentes con Trastornos de la Conducta Alimentaria / Suicidal ideation and self-injurious behavior in adolescents with eating disorders

Introducción. Es conocida la presencia de ideas suicidas y comportamientos autolesivos en pacientes con Trastornos de la Conducta Alimentaria (TCA), sin embargo, esta asociación no está claramente definida empíricamente. El objetivo del estudio es determinar la prevalencia de ideación suicida y conductas autolesivas en adolescentes con TCA. Un segundo objetivo es estudiar la asociación entre conducta autolesiva e ideación suicida, gravedad de la sintomatología alimentaria, depresiva, ansiosa, motivación para el cambio y perfeccionismo. Metodología. Se evaluaron a 109 pacientes (edad media: 14,74 años (DE:1,53); 87,2% mujeres) con el Inventario de TCA (EDI-2), el Inventario de Depresión de Beck (BDI-II), el Inventario de Ansiedad Estado/Rasgo (STAI), la Escala de Perfeccionismo en Niños y Adolescentes (CAPS) y el Cuestionario de Etapas de Cambio en la Anorexia Nerviosa (ANSOCQ). Resultados. Cuarenta y siete pacientes (43,1%) presentaron ideación suicida y 34 (31,2%) conductas autolesivas. La presencia de ideación suicida no discriminó entre pacientes TCA con y sin comportamiento autolesivo. Los pacientes con comportamiento autolesivo presentaron una puntuación significativamente mayor en todas las escalas del EDI-2, a excepción de Miedo a Madurar, en la puntuación total del BDI-II, STAI y en la CAPS. Se encontró una asociación entre la conducta autolesiva y la motivación para el cambio. Conclusiones. Un porcentaje importante de adolescentes con TCA presentan ideación suicida y comportamientos autolesivos, siendo el perfil psicopatológico de estos pacientes más grave. La presencia de ideación suicida en adolescentes con TCA no tiene necesariamente implicaciones con la conducta autolesiva, este comportamiento podría explicarse como consecuencia de la necesidad de regular emociones negativas intensas (AU)

Introduction. The presence of suicidal thoughts and self-injurious behaviors in patients with eating disorders (ED) is well-known; however, this association is currently not defined empirically. The aim of the study is to determine the prevalence of suicidal ideation and self-harm in adolescents with eating disorders. A second objective is to study the association between self-injurious behavior and suicidal ideation, severity of eating disorder symptoms and symptoms of depression and anxiety, motivation to change and perfectionism. Methodology. We evaluated 109 patients (mean age, 14.74 years (SD: 1.53); 87.2% female) using the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI-2), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the Child and Adolescent Perfectionism Scale (CAPS) and the Anorexia Nervosa Stages of Change Questionnaire (ANSOCQ). Results. Forty-seven patients (43.1%) had suicidal ideation and 34 (31.2%), self-injurious behavior. The presence of suicidal ideation did not discriminate between patients with or without self-injurious behavior. Patients who self-harm had significantly higher scores on all scales of the EDI-2, except for ‘maturity fears’, in the total scores of BDI-II, STAI and CAPS. An association between self-injurious behavior and motivation to change was found. Conclusions. A significant percentage of adolescents with eating disorders present suicidal ideation and self-injurious behavior, making the psychopathological profile of these patients more severe. The presence of suicidal ideation in adolescents with eating disorders does not necessarily mply that they have self-injurious behavior; rather, such behavior could be a result of the need to regulate intense negative emotions (AU)

Suicidal ideation and self-injurious behavior in adolescents with eating disorders.

INTRODUCTION: The presence of suicidal thoughts and self-injurious behaviors in patients with eating disorders (ED) is well-known; however, this association is currently not defined empirically. The aim of the study is to determine the prevalence of suicidal ideation and self-harm in adolescents with eating disorders. A second objective is to study the association between self-injurious behavior and suicidal ideation, severity of eating disorder symptoms and symptoms of depression and anxiety, motivation to change and perfectionism. METHODOLOGY: We evaluated 109 patients (mean age, 14.74 years (SD: 1.53); 87.2% female) using the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI-2), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the Child and Adolescent Perfectionism Scale (CAPS) and the Anorexia Nervosa Stages of Change Questionnaire (ANSOCQ). RESULTS: Forty-seven patients (43.1%) had suicidal ideation and 34 (31.2%), self-injurious behavior. The presence of suicidal ideation did not discriminate between patients with or without self-injurious behavior. Patients who self-harm had significantly higher scores on all scales of the EDI-2, except for “maturity fears”, in the total scores of BDI-II, STAI and CAPS. An association between selfinjurious behavior and motivation to change was found. CONCLUSIONS: A significant percentage of adolescents with eating disorders present suicidal ideation and selfinjurious behavior, making the psychopathological profile of these patients more severe. The presence of suicidal ideation in adolescents with eating disorders does not necessarily imply that they have self-injurious behavior; rather, such behavior could be a result of the need to regulate intense negative emotions.