[Leptin levels in female patients with restrictive and purgative types of anorexia nervosa].

BACKGROUND

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder with typically chronic course. Two subtypes of anorexia nervosa have been described based on the pattern of eating behavior. Restrictive form of anorexia nervosa is characterized by chronically decreased food intake, while the purgative subtype typically consists of alternating episodes of fasting and overnutrition with factitious vomiting.

RESULTS

The aim of this study was to compare anthropometric parameters, serum levels of fat-derived hormone leptin, cholesterol, triacylglycerols and serum leptin/body mass index ratio in patients with restrictive and purgative subtypes of anorexia nervosa respectively. Significantly lower body weight (37.79 +/- 3.93 vs. 49.63 +/- 9.84 kg, p < 0.05), body mass index (13.51 +/- 1.43 vs. 17.75 +/- 2.64 kg/m2, p < 0.05),), body fat percentage (13.28 +/- 2.83 vs. 18.9 +/- 5.65%, p < 0.05), serum leptin (1.117 +/- 0.95 vs. 5.88 +/- 4.7 ng/ml, p < 0.05) and cholesterol levels (4.14 +/- 1.78 vs. 6.31 +/- 1.27 mmol/l, p < 0.05) were found in patient with restrictive relative to purgative subtype of anorexia nervosa. In contrast, no difference in triglyceride levels between both groups was found. Serum leptin levels positively correlated with body mass index and body fat percentage only in patients with purgative subtype of anorexia nervosa (body mass index r = 0.95, p < 0.001, body fat percentage r = 0.64, p < 0.05) but not in those with restrictive subtype.

CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, we demonstrated that serum leptin levels were significantly lower in restrictive relative to purgative subtype of anorexia nervosa. We suggest that this difference is primarily due to distinctions in body fat content.