Many young girls who struggle with anorexia do so at a time critical for bone mass development. While adolescents are often able to recover from anorexia if they are admitted to an eating disorder treatment program, it is difficult to reverse some of the physical damage experienced, especially related to bone mass development.
In a recent study discussed on MedPage Today, researchers experienced success when treating bone mass deficiency with an estrogen patch that mimics the natural production of estrogen in the body. While some other studies have tested the effectiveness of estrogen administered through an oral dose, these types of estrogen treatment have not yielded positive change in bone mass density.
The researchers tested the effectiveness of the estrogen patch and compared it with the success rate of a placebo on 110 girls aged 12 to 18. Led by Madhusmita Misra, of the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, the researchers conducted bone density scans to determine whether the estrogen distributed in a way that imitated natural production would be an effective way to treat bone density loss due to anorexia.
While none of the participants improved bone mass density at a level equivalent to a total reversal of the effects of anorexia, those administered estrogen did experience a significant improvement in bone mass density.