Evidence of executive dysfunction in extremely obese adolescents: a pilot study.

Background: Obesity in children and adolescents is 1 of the most urgent and serious health threats confronting the United States. Extremely obese adolescents (body mass index >99th percentile for age and gender) are a unique subgroup of obese youth who are at considerable medical and psychosocial risk. Little is known about the cognitive function of extremely obese adolescents.

Neuropsychological performance of a clinical sample of extremely obese individuals.

Obesity is a leading cause of preventable death in America and its prevalence is increasing at an alarming rate. While it is known that individuals with specific obesity-related medical conditions perform poorly on neuropsychological tasks, recent evidence suggests that cognitive dysfunction in obese individuals may occur independently of medical co-morbidities. This study examined neuropsychological performance in a clinical sample of extremely obese patients.

The Iowa gambling task as a measure of decision making in women with bulimia nervosa.

Persistent chaotic feeding behavior (i.e., bingeing and purging), despite consequent adverse health and psychosocial consequences, is central to the definition and diagnosis of bulimia nervosa (BN).