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Table 1 Family-based treatment – anorexia nervosa

From: Canadian practice guidelines for the treatment of children and adolescents with eating disorders

Certainty assessment

Impact

Certainty

Importance

№ of studies

Study design

Risk of bias

Inconsistency

Indirectness

Imprecision

Other considerations

FBT vs supportive/dynamic individual– outcomes - Remission (assessed with: attaining target weight, good outcome category) Weight gain

 3

randomised trials

not serious

not serious

not serious

not serious

none

One meta-analysis indicated superiority of FBT at 6- and 12- month follow up. Three RCTs 43/90 (47.8%) with good outcome or in full remission with FBT, compared to 26/89 (29.2%) in Individual group. Total n = 179.

HIGH

CRITICAL

not serious

not serious

not serious

not serious

none

Weight gain greater in the FBT group compared to individual therapy group at end of treatment.

HIGH

CRITICAL

RCT (FBT vs CBT) Remission/Good Outcome (assessed with: Morgan Russell Scale)

 1

randomised trials

not serious

not serious

not serious

not serious

none

7/13 (53.8%) had a good outcome in FBT group vs. 7/12 (58.3%) in the CBT group. No significant difference.

HIGH

CRITICAL

Weight Gain (assessed with: kg and %IBW)

 1

Case control

serious b

not serious

not serious

not serious

none

One case control retrospective chart review. 32 treated with FBT model compared to 14 in nonspecific therapy. Those in FBT made greater gains in weight.

VERY LOW

CRITICAL

Weight (assessed with: kg)

 7

Case series

very serious a,b

not serious

not serious

not serious

none

7 large case series (total n = 223). Of these, 32 were children under age 13. Weight was significantly improved, pre to post.

VERY LOW

CRITICAL

Weight (assessed with: kg)

 11

Case reports

very serious a,b

not serious

not serious

not serious

none

11 case reports detailing 29 patients who restored weight with FBT. Some described twins, comorbid conversion disorder, FBT within a group home setting, or FBT starting on a medical unit or use of FBT combined with medication.

VERY LOW

CRITICAL

  1. Bibliography:
  2. RCTs - Russell 1987 [6], Lock 2010 [23], Robin 1999 [22] (compared to psychodynamic individual)
  3. RCT – Ball 2004 [24] (compared to CBT)
  4. Case Control -Gusella 2017 [25]
  5. Case Series - Paulson-Karlsson 2009 [26], Lock 2006 [27], Le Grange 2005 [28], Loeb 2007 [29], Goldstein 2016 [30], Couturier 2010 [31], Herscovici 1996 [32]
  6. Case Reports – Le Grange 1999 [33], Le Grange 2003 [34], Loeb 2009 [35], Sim 2004 [36], Krautter 2004 [37], Aspen 2014 [38], Matthews 2016 [39], Turkiewicz 2010 [40], O’Neil 2012 [41], Duvvuri 2012 [42], Goldstein 2013[43]