Conditions We Treat

Medical Stabilization

The ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders offers comprehensive medical stabilization for men and women suffering from severe anorexia nervosa (restricting and purging sub-types) and bulimia nervosa.

ACUTE patients are typically below 70% of their ideal body weight and suffer from serious medical complications as a result of their eating disorder. Specialized medical care is crucial to avoid the common and potentially fatal complications of refeeding syndrome.

Eating disorders are complex psychological illnesses that, when in the most severe form, can have devastating physical effects on the entire body system. There are many common medical complications that can occur as a result of severe restricting, purging, and diuretic or laxative abuse.

Medical Complications of Anorexia Nervosa

• Cardiovascular: bradycardia, hypotension, mitral valve prolapse, sudden death arrhythmia, refeeding syndrome, echo changes
• Dermatologic: dry skin, alopecia, lanugo hair, starvation-associated pruritus
• Gastrointestinal: constipation, refeeding pancreatitis, acute gastric dilation, delayed gastric emptying, hepatitis, dysphagia
• Endocrine and Metabolic: amenorrhea, infertility, osteoporosis, thyroid abnormalities, hypercortisolemia, hypoglycemia, neurogenic diabetes insipidus, arrested growth
• Hematologic: pancytopenia due to starvation, decreased sedimentation rate, gelatinous bone marrow transformation
• Neurologic: cerebral atrophy
• Opthalmic: lagopthalmos
• Pulmonary: aspiration pneumonia, respiratory failure, spontaneous pneumothorax, emphysema

Medical Complications of Bulimia Nervosa

• Gastrointestinal: dental erosion, parotid gland swelling, esophageal rupture, gastroesophageal reflux (GERD), constipation due to laxative abuse, cathartic colon, Mallory-Weiss tears
• Pulmonary-Mediastinal: aspiration pneumonia, pneumomediastinum
• Cardiac: arrhythmia, diet pill toxicity - palpitations, hypertension, emitene cardiomyopathy
• Endocrine: irregular menses, mineralocorticoid excess
• Metabolic: hypokalemia, dehydration, nephropathy, metabolic alkalosis, pseudo barter’s syndrome, hyperphosphatemia

Learn More about Eating Disorders

• Anorexia Nervosa
• Bulimia Nervosa
• Eating Disorders In-Depth
• When Eating Disorders Affect Men
• Refeeding Syndrome during Nutritional Rehabilitation