Treatment of severe weight loss in anorexia nervosa with hyperalimentation and psychotherapy

Hyperalimentation is a feeding technique in which all essential nutrients are infused intravenously to sustain patients who cannot eat. Although no panacea for anorexia nervosa, hyperalimentation can provide calories for intractable, malnourished patients. The authors describe the psychiatric and hyperalimentation treatment for four severely anorectic patients who had lost up to 44% of their body weight before entering the study. With treatment their percentage of ideal weight rose from a mean of 59% to a mean of 81% during hospitalization, and to a mean of 94% on outpatient follow-up of 5--16 months. The authors discuss the indications, limitations, and need for interdisciplinary collaboration in this treatment.