Anorexia nervosa in teenagers: change in family function after family therapy, at 2-year follow-up.

Family therapy has emerged as the treatment of choice for young patients with anorexia nervosa, yet there is insufficient knowledge about what actually happens within the family unit in these cases. The purpose of the present study was to investigate how a family undergoing treatment due to an anorectic child changes their mode of functioning. Twenty-six families were studied. The concepts chosen in the study were closely linked to fundamental principles advocated by the therapeutic model used in the treatment, using a multi-method approach with both observer ratings and self-rating questionnaires. According to observer ratings, the families had changed towards a more functional pattern on all dimensions rated. They had a clearer hierarchy and a higher degree of competency. Cohesion and Adaptability had changed towards a more balanced pattern, away from enmeshment and rigidity. According to self-ratings, the families changed toward more expressiveness. Families where the patient had recovered were less enmeshed at follow-up. We also found a tendency towards higher degree of competence in these families.