Because vomiting rarely occurs in isolation, physicians should also assess for medical consequences related to low body weight, binge eating, fasting, excessive exercise, and other methods of purging, such as the use of laxatives or diuretics.
Finally, an electrocardiogram should be used to examine potential cardiac arrhythmia. In addition, a complete blood count should be ordered to evaluate leucopenia, anemia, or thrombocytopenia, and a comprehensive panel should include electrolytes, renal function tests, and liver enzyme tests. Taken together, vomiting can lead to a vicious cycle in which its physical consequences (“chipmunk cheeks,” abdominal bloating, and weakened muscles at the base of the esophagus) contribute to more frequent vomiting which increase severity of medical consequences.Īccording to the Academy for Eating Disorders Guide to Medical Care, third edition, patients with eating disorders should receive a physical exam that includes objective measures of height and weight, oral temperature, and lying and standing heart rate and blood pressure. Finally, some patients develop swelling around their cheeks and jawline due to swelling of salivary glands (parotid glands). The repeated use of self-induced vomiting can weaken the muscle at the base of the esophagus and contribute to the development of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) as a complication. Patients who vomit after taking medication, such as antidepressants, may not achieve therapeutic doses. Patients who use self-induced vomiting can also experience more frequent upper respiratory infections if they accidentally inhale vomitus. The use of instruments or fingers to trigger gagging can lead to tears in the back of the throat, sore throat and frequent infections, and calluses may form on the back of the hand and knuckles (Russell’s sign) used to trigger gagging from frequent scraping against upper teeth. Frequent vomiting may cause a tear in the lining of the esophagus close to the stomach (a Mallory-Weiss tear) that may produce blood in vomit (hematemesis). Stomach acid can also contribute to dental cavities by eroding tooth enamel, lead to frequent heartburn, and abdominal pain or nausea. The loss of stomach acid while vomiting contributes to abnormally low potassium levels in the blood (hypokalemia). In addition, self-induced vomiting contributes to electrolyte imbalances. This makes self-induced vomiting a prevalent problem and underscores the importance of identifying how it impacts your body.įrequent self-induced vomiting causes dehydration, which can influence blood pressure and alter heart rate, specifically contributing to low blood pressure (hypotension) and causing a slower pulse rate (bradycardia) or an irregular heart rate (arrhythmia). Further, recurrent self-induced vomiting to control weight is reported by approximately 1 in 50 adolescent girls and 1 in 500 adolescent boys. Today, we understand that vomiting occurs in several eating disorders, including the binge-purge subtype of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and purging disorder. This article marks a historical shift in awareness that patients who were at a healthy weight could suffer severe medical consequences from an eating disorder characterized by self-induced vomiting. Christopher Fairburn detailed the emotional and physical consequences of self-induced vomiting in four case studies. In a 1980 article titled “Self-Induced Vomiting,” Dr. How Self-Induced Vomiting Impacts Your Body
0 kommentar(er)
