2026-04-13T01:53:03Zhttps://recercat.cat/oai/request

oai:recercat.cat:2445/2234342025-12-04T22:32:12Zcom_2072_1057col_2072_478917col_2072_478931

urn:hdl:2445/223434 Improving Anorexia Nervosa Treatment with Virtual Reality Body Exposure and Attentional Bias Modification: A Single Case Study Ascione, Mariarca Serrano Troncoso, Eduardo Carulla-Roig, Marta Blasco Martínez, Anna Guerrero Álvarez, Fernando Meschberger-Annweiler, Franck-Alexandre Porras-García, Bruno Ferrer, Marta (Ferrer García) Gutiérrez Maldonado, José Realitat virtual Psicoteràpia Anorèxia nerviosa Virtual reality Psychotherapy Anorexia nervosa This case study explores the potential of integrating attentional bias modification training (ABMT) with mirror exposure therapy (MET), utilizing virtual reality and eye-tracking, for a 14-year-old girl diagnosed with anorexia nervosa (AN). The ABMT-MET intervention was used alongside a standard treatment program called Home Treatment (HoT), which combines cognitive behavioral therapy with family-based therapy. Though the patient began HoT with a 3-week inpatient phase, the ABMT-MET intervention specifically took place during the subsequent Home Treatment sessions. The experimental treatment, comprising five consecutive weekly sessions, was bookended by pre- and post-assessment sessions and included a six-month follow-up. During the sessions, the patient engaged in systematic and hierarchical exposure to a virtual representation of her silhouette, with gradual adjustments made to the avatar’s body mass index (BMI) toward a healthier range. ABMT sessions, conducted before each MET session, aimed to redistribute the patient’s focus evenly across her body, successfully neutralizing her initial attentional bias toward non-weight-related body parts. The patient demonstrated consistent decreases in anxiety and fear of weight gain, effectively progressing through the BMI hierarchy in the virtual setting. Post-treatment assessments indicated significant enhancements in body dissatisfaction, drive for thinness, body-checking behaviors, and body appreciation, with these gains preserved at the six-month follow-up, although the attentional bias returned to pre-treatment levels. Though the single-case design limits definitive conclusions, these findings suggest ABMT-MET may be a promising adjunct therapy for AN, requiring further research for confirmation. 2025-09-29T17:32:31Z 2025-09-29T17:32:31Z 2024-06-01 2025-09-29T17:32:31Z info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion Reproducció del document publicat a: https://doi.org/10.3390/app14114340 Applied Sciences, 2024, vol. 14, num.11, 4340 https://doi.org/10.3390/app14114340 cc-by (c) Ascione, Mariarca et al., 2024 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess MDPI Articles publicats en revistes (Psicologia Clínica i Psicobiologia)