OBJECTIVE: To evaluate lumbar bone mineral density (BMD) in girls with eating disorders in the beginning of the treatment, at six months, and after one year of treatment. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This prospective study involved 35 female adolescents with AN or EDNOS treated during one year. Lumbar (L1-L4) bone mineral density by DXA was performed in the beginning of treatment, at six months, and after one year of treatment. RESULTS: There was improvement in weight, length, BMI, bone age (p < 0.001), and 70% of the adolescents with secondary amenorrhea had their menstrual cycles restored. However, the Z-score of lumbar BMD did not show differences during one year of follow-up (p = 0.76). CONCLUSION: The recovery of BMD does not occur together with the restoration of hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis.
Anorexia nervosa; bone density; adolescence; amenorrhea; eating disorders
