Predictors of rehospitalization after total weight recovery in adolescents with anorexia nervosa

OBJECTIVE: The current study analyzed the variables related to rehospitalization after total weight recovery in adolescents with anorexia nervosa. METHOD: One hundred and one patients first admitted for inpatient treatment, aged 11-19 years, were followed up for 12 months after discharge. RESULTS: Twenty-five subjects (24.8%) required readmission after complete weight recovery and 76 (75.2%) did not. Duration of disorder, weight loss, body mass index at first admission, and global body image distortion were similar in the two groups. Patients needing readmission had a lower rate of weight gain (p < .001), a lower mean age (p = . 007), a higher mean score on the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT; p = .009), and a higher percentage of hips overestimation (p = .049). In a stepwise logistic regression analysis, these three variables predicted readmission and correctly classified 77.6% of patients. Taken as discrete variables, age younger than 15 years old, EAT score above 55, and a rate of weight gain lower than 150 grams per day were associated with a higher percentage of readmissions. DISCUSSION: The variables most clearly related to readmission were young age, abnormal eating attitudes, and a low rate of weight gain.