Title |
Clinicians’ views on working with anorexia nervosa and autism spectrum disorder comorbidity: a qualitative study
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Published in |
BMC Psychiatry, August 2017
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DOI | 10.1186/s12888-017-1455-3 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Emma Kinnaird, Caroline Norton, Kate Tchanturia |
Abstract |
Anorexia nervosa (AN) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) form a relatively common comorbidity, with poorer illness outcomes and poorer responses to treatments for AN compared to individuals without ASD. However, the treatment of this comorbidity remains poorly understood: no research to date has examined how clinicians currently approach treating AN/ASD. This study aimed to explore the experiences of clinicians working with comorbid AN/ASD using qualitative methods in order to identify areas for future improvement. Interviews with individual clinicians (n = 9) were carried out and explored using thematic analysis. The findings suggest that many clinicians lack confidence in treating this comorbidity, which requires specific changes to treatment to accommodate the issues raised by comorbid ASD. At present, any adaptations to treatment are based on the previous experience of individual clinicians, rather than representing a systematic approach. Further research is needed to empirically assess potential treatment modifications for this group and to establish guidelines for best clinical practice. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 19 | 32% |
Japan | 7 | 12% |
United States | 6 | 10% |
Korea, Republic of | 1 | 2% |
France | 1 | 2% |
Georgia | 1 | 2% |
Canada | 1 | 2% |
Spain | 1 | 2% |
Unknown | 23 | 38% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 40 | 67% |
Scientists | 9 | 15% |
Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 9 | 15% |
Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 2 | 3% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Unknown | 127 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Master | 21 | 17% |
Researcher | 17 | 13% |
Student > Bachelor | 16 | 13% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 13 | 10% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 8 | 6% |
Other | 16 | 13% |
Unknown | 36 | 28% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Psychology | 41 | 32% |
Medicine and Dentistry | 20 | 16% |
Nursing and Health Professions | 12 | 9% |
Unspecified | 4 | 3% |
Social Sciences | 4 | 3% |
Other | 7 | 6% |
Unknown | 39 | 31% |