New Treatment Perspectives in Adolescents With Anorexia Nervosa: the Efficacy of Non-invasive Brain-directed Treatment

Anorexia in Adolescence Clinical Trial

Official title: New Treatment Perspectives in Adolescents With Anorexia Nervosa: the Efficacy of Non-invasive Brain-directed Treatment

Status Recruiting

Clinical Trial Summary

The present randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled trial aims at evaluating the efficacy of a tDCS treatment in improving the clinical outcome of adolescents with AN and investigate brain mechanisms acting in AN.

Clinical Trial Description

The investigators hypothesized that excitatory tDCS over the left PFC and inhibitory tDCS over the right PFC (anode left/cathode right) may aid in altering/resetting inter-hemispheric balance in children and adolescents with AN, reducing their control over eating behaviors and improving the AN psychopathology. Furthermore, the investigators will employ TMS-EEG to directly explore the DLPFC activity of children and adolescent with AN, with specific attention to the differences between hemispheres. Moreover, paired pulse TMS and repetitive TMS protocols will be used to investigate the functional mechanisms within the prefrontal cortex of youth patients with AN. Then, the investigators will assess if potential changes of specific biomarkers, such as those related to the endogenous stress response system functioning, will occur after tDCS treatment and will correlate with clinical improvement. ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Anorexia
• Anorexia in Adolescence
• Anorexia Nervosa

• NCT number: NCT05674266
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Bambino Gesù Hospital and Research Institute
• Contact: Floriana Costanzo
• Phone: 0668597091
• Email: floriana.costanzo@opbg.net
• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: June 30, 2020
• Completion date: January 30, 2025