Light therapy in the clinical management of an eating-disordered adolescent with winter exacerbation

✍ Scribed by Ash, Jennifer Brenner ;Piazza, Eugene ;Anderson, Janis L.

• Publisher: Wiley (John Wiley & Sons)
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 24 KB
• Volume: 23
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0276-3478
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1098-108x(199801)23:1<93::aid-eat12>3.0.co;2-o

✦ Synopsis

A 17-year-old female followed for atypical eating disorder characterized by restriction was noted to worsen medically during winter months in each of 2 consecutive years. A trial of bright light therapy was initiated during the second admission. Within days of light treatment, the patient showed signs of clinical improvement in mood and eating. Within 1 month of light treatment, the patient's depression ratings decreased from a Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) score of 37 (severe) to 17 (mild/moderate). In addition, her eating improved moderately as revealed both by a slight decrease in Eating Attitudes Test (EAT) score (78 to 64) and by significant improvements in dietary intake and medical status. The present report suggests that light therapy may be a useful adjunct in the clinical management of eatingdisordered youth who present with seasonal patterns of exacerbation. Controlled studies of light treatment in younger eating disorder populations are warranted.