We will use a conditioning paradigm to experimentally investigate how individuals with AN compared to healthy controls (HCs) avoid disorder-specific, as well as generally aversive and pleasant outcomes and to what extent avoidance behaviors return…
ID
Source
Brief title
Condition
- Eating disorders and disturbances
Synonym
Research involving
Sponsors and support
Intervention
Outcome measures
Primary outcome
Characteristics of avoidance behaviors (i.e. frequency, velocity and
directedness of avoidance decisions) and appetitive and aversive conditioned
responses.
Secondary outcome
Valence ratings for the three outcomes (small portions of milkshake, aversive
sounds, small monetary gain); symptoms of stress, depression and anxiety;
sensitivity to reward and punishment.
Background summary
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a severe and disabling mental disorder (Klump et al.,
2009), that is accompanied by a range of mental and physical comorbidities
(Mitchell & Crow, 2006) leading to one of the highest mortality rates in
psychiatry (Papadopoulos et al., 2009). While there is an urgent need to
improve current treatments, the mechanisms underlying AN are still poorly
understood. One of the core symptoms of the disorder is the fear of
(uncontrollable) weight gain and fear-induced avoidance of especially
high-calorie food intake. Fear and avoidance have been related to long-term
treatment outcomes and weight-recovery (Steinglass et al., 2010; Schebendach et
al., 2008) and might play an important role in maintaining the eating disorder.
In this project we focus on avoidance as a key mechanistic pathway underpinning
the symptoms in anorexia nervosa and try to gain a better understanding of the
dynamics of food avoidance behaviors in AN patients.
Study objective
We will use a conditioning paradigm to experimentally investigate how
individuals with AN compared to healthy controls (HCs) avoid disorder-specific,
as well as generally aversive and pleasant outcomes and to what extent
avoidance behaviors return after an extinction with response prevention phase.
Furthermore, we will examine how appetitive and fear learning processes are
related to food avoidance in AN patients.
Study design
Participants will take part in a conditioning task including three different
outcomes: a small portion of a high-caloric milkshake, an aversive scream and a
small monetary gain. The conditioning task consists of Pavlovian and
Instrumental learning phases. This study will be a block-design experimental
conditioning study. The order of the blocks is counter-balanced across
participants.
Study burden and risks
The proposed study carries minimal risks and discomfort, but it is
time-consuming for participants. However, the information they deliver
significantly improves insights into the way individuals with AN make decisions
about and eventually execute (food) avoidance behaviors. As an incentive and
compensation for participation in the study, the participants will receive ¤15
in Amazon or bol.com vouchers and can earn additional ¤4 to ¤12 during the
experiment depending on their performance in the computer task. We will also
reimburse the extra costs of travel for those AN patients and HCs that come to
the research facility from further away.
Universiteitssingel 40
Maastricht 6229 ER
NL
Universiteitssingel 40
Maastricht 6229 ER
NL
Listed location countries
Age
Inclusion criteria
In order to be eligible for participation, subjects need to fulfill the
following criteria:
Anorexia Nervosa
1. >= 16 years of age
2. Be able to give informed consent
3. Able to speak, read and understand Dutch
4. Fulfill the DSM-5 criteria for anorexia nervosa
5. Have a BMI between 14 and 18.5 (16 - 18 yr. old participants have a BMI,
that falls below the 5th BMI-for-age percentile) and/or currently undergo
treatment for their anorexia.
Healthy controls
1. 1. >= 16 years of age
2. Be able to give informed consent
3. Able to speak, read and understand Dutch
4. Have a BMI between 20 and 25 (16 - 18 yr. old participants have a BMI that
falls between the 40th and the 85th BMI-for-age percentile)
5. Fall within one standard deviation of the Eating Disorder Examination
Questionnaire mean norm scores for the respective comparison group
6. Like the taste of milk shake
Exclusion criteria
Anorexia nervosa patients
1. A comorbid diagnosis of bipolar or psychotic disorder.
2. Use of psychotropic medication with a stable dosage for less than a month
Healthy control participants
1. A current or past diagnosis of an eating disorder or another psychiatric
disorder
2. Use of psychotropic medication
For all participants
1. Visual problems if not corrected
2. Pregnancy
3. Chronic ear illnesses (e.g. tinnitus)
4. A known history of neurological disorders or injuries
5. Allergies or intolerances against the ingredients of the milkshakes
Design
Recruitment
Followed up by the following (possibly more current) registration
No registrations found.
Other (possibly less up-to-date) registrations in this register
No registrations found.
In other registers
| Register | ID |
|---|---|
| CCMO | NL75115.068.20 |