Mapping the Mind: Gray Matter Signatures of Personality Pathology in Female Adolescent Anorexia Nervosa Persist Through Treatment

TL;DR

This study finds that personality disorders in teenage girls with anorexia nervosa are linked to brain structure changes that remain even after treatment.

Contribution

The study identifies specific brain regions associated with personality pathology in anorexia nervosa that persist post-treatment.

Findings

Personality disorder scores correlated with gray matter volume in the mid-cingulate cortex and left superior parietal–occipital lobule.

Histrionic traits were linked to gray matter changes in the thalamus and mid-cingulate cortex before and after treatment.

Borderline and antisocial traits showed associations with thalamic and cingulate gray matter volume at baseline and follow-up.

Abstract

Background: Comorbid personality disorders (PDs) in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) are associated with increased psychopathology, higher suicide risk, and poorer treatment response and outcomes. This study aimed to examine associations between gray matter (GM) volume and PDs in female adolescents with AN before and after short-term psychotherapeutic and nutritional therapy. Methods: Eighteen female adolescents with acute AN, mean age 15.9 years, underwent 3T magnetic resonance imaging before and after weight restoration. The average interval between scans was 2.6 months. Structural brain changes were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry. PDs were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Disorders (SCID II) and the Assessment of Identity Development Questionnaire. Results: SCID-II total scores showed significant positive associations with GM volume in the mid-cingulate cortex at both time points and in the left superior parietal–occipital lobule at baseline. The histrionic subscale correlated with GM volume in the thalamus bilaterally and the left superior parietal–occipital lobule in both assessments, as well as with the mid-cingulate cortex at follow-up. Borderline and antisocial subscales were associated with GM volume in the thalamus bilaterally at baseline and in the right mid-cingulate cortex at follow-up. Conclusions: PDs in female adolescent patients with AN may be specifically related to GM alterations in the thalamus, cingulate, and parieto-occipital regions, which are present during acute illness and persist after weight restoration therapy.

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