Malnutrition From Anorexia May Cause Emphysema

Using a new method to assess computed tomography (CT) scans in order to analyze the lungs of anorexic patients, researchers found that malnutrition had changed the physical structure of the lungs, and that the changes were similar to those found in emphysema caused by cigarette smoking. Their findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago (IL, USA).

The researchers compared CT findings from 14 patients diagnosed with anorexia nervosa and 16 control patients. In addition to providing images, CT measured the absorbance of x-rays within the lung. These values were converted to measurements of lung structure and compared to clinical factors, such as body mass index and results of breathing tests. The results indicated that the lung structure of the anorexic patients differed from that of the control patients, with a loss of some of the tissue that helps deliver oxygen to the rest of the body.

"These results may influence the timing of nutritional support for anorexia patients to avoid or reverse this damage to the lung,” said lead author Harvey O. Coxson, Ph.D., assistant professor of radiology at the University of British Columbia (Vancouver, Canada). "Further, if malnutrition causes emphysema in anorexic patients, it may contribute to emphysema in smokers. If so, nutritional treatment may slow the development of emphysema in smokers.”




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