Clinical factors influencing resilience in patients with anorexia nervosa

PURPOSE: This study was to elucidate clinical factors influencing resilience in anorexia nervosa (AN) patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twenty female patients with AN (median age =30.0 years, quartile deviation =6.8) and 40 female healthy controls (HCs) (median age =30.0 years, quartile deviation =8.6) participated in the present study. Resilience was assessed with the Connor– Davidson resilience scale (CD-RISC). Clinical symptoms were evaluated with the structured interview guide for the Hamilton depression rating scale (SIGH-D) and the eating disorder inventory-2 (EDI-2). RESULTS: Scores of the CD-RISC in the AN group were lower than those in the HC group, and the SIGH-D score in the AN group was higher than that in the HC group. Scores of interoceptive confusion, interpersonal difficulty and negative self-image subscales of the EDI-2 negatively correlated with the CD-RISC score. Moreover, stepwise regression analysis showed that negative self-image score was an independent predictor of the CD-RISC score. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that among these clinical factors including psychopathologies, self-dissatisfaction and feeling of being rejected by others are the most important influencing factors on an AN patients’ resilience.