PET Imaging Study of Recovered Anorexics

Several studies in the past suggest that individuals who have or had anorexia nervosa may
have alterations in brain serotonin. Serotonin seems to play an important role in regulating
anxiety, mood, and other symptoms found in anorexia nervosa. We will be using a technology
called Positron Emission Tomography (PET), which is a method used to take pictures of the
body, in this case, the brain. Study participants will undergo two baseline PET scans on the
first day of the study. They will then be given a medication called fluoxetine (also know as
Prozac) to take for 8 weeks. At the end of the 8th week, they will return for a third PET
scan. By comparing the brain scans, before and after fluoxetine treatment, we can understand
more about how treatment with fluoxetine affects the serotonin receptors in the brain. We
will be comparing brain serotonin system in women who have recovered from anorexia with
healthy control women who have never had an eating disorder in order to gain a better
understanding of changes in the serotonin system associated with eating disorders. This
study may help shed light on how to make fluoxetine a more effective treatment for anorexia
nervosa.