“Perceptions of illness in individuals with anorexia nervosa” is a study conducted to examine how individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) perceive the illness as compared to laymen and women. According to the authors, understanding the way psychological factors function to influence the way individuals respond to illnesses is important in explaining variations in behaviors related to illnesses and in developing effective intervention measures to improve patient outcomes.
In addition, there are gaps in knowledge because the available literature mainly focuses on illness perceptions in conditions such as diabetes and asthma, but little focus has been dedicated to mental illnesses. This assertion justified the need to conduct the study. 95 participants with eating disorders were selected randomly from two sources and completed the Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire (IPQ-R) (Holliday, Wall, Treasure, & Weinman, 2005). In the control group, 80 laymen and women were selected randomly to participate in the study and they completed a modified IPQ-R questionnaire to elicit their perceptions towards AN.
Data were analyzed using SPSS version 10 for Windows. The results showed that people with AN see their condition as chronic and highly distressing with numerous associated negative consequences. In addition, they held the view that it was difficult to prevent or cure their condition. On the other side, the control group perceived AN as a highly preventable and curable health condition. These findings are important because due to their perception, individuals with AH had associated poor mental health and poor functioning.
This understanding could be applied in the management of AN. The laymen and women in the control group conceptualized AN as simply a “sliming disease” that can be changed easily (Holliday et al., 2005). However, such perceptions can contribute significantly to stigmatization associated with AH leading to poor patient outcomes.
“Anorexia nervosa in young men: A cohort study” is a cohort study conducted to assess the background and outcomes of AN among young men. This study was necessary to fill the current knowledge gaps as the available studies on AN approach =a 10:1 female-to-male prevalence ratio” (Lindblad, Lindberg, & Hjern, 2006). In other words, AN in males is normally considered as a copy of the same in females and this assumption can affect treatment approaches and outcomes. 61 men born with a history of AN were selected randomly and compared with the general population, specifically based on social outcomes, socio-economic backgrounds, health history, and other variables. Data were analyzed using the SAS 8.0 software package for Windows.
The results showed that some differences exist between men suffering from AN and the general male population without AN. Differences were seen in social backgrounds, the capacity to take care of oneself, and living with other people, especially family members and partners. In other words, the study showed that social backgrounds could be used for AN prognosis. However, some similarities were noted as psychiatric hospitalization of males with AN was almost the same as that of the control group (Lindblad et al., 2006).
However, the study had a major limitation in that the participants were drawn from a pool of hospitalized males due to AH, which means those that sought outpatient services were not captured. Therefore, it means that the cases considered was severe and thus the findings may not be generalizable in other set-ups. Nevertheless, the study’s findings add to the available literature on this topic given that AN in men does not have robust data in literature as opposed to AN in women.
References
Holliday, J., Wall, E., Treasure, J., & Weinman, J. (2005). Perceptions of illness in individuals with anorexia nervosa: A comparison with lay men and women. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 37(1), 50-56. Web.
Lindblad, F., Lindberg, L., & Hjern, A. (2006). Anorexia nervosa in young men: A cohort study. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 39(8), 662-666. Web.