WebMD Medical News Brunilda Nazario, MD Jan. 5, 2009 -- Women
with bulimia nervosa may be particularly impulsive because of
their brain activity patterns, a new study shows. The study,
published in January's edition of the Archives of General
Psychiatry, included 20 women with bulimia and 20 women without
bulimia. The women's ages and BMI were similar in both groups.
Each woman had her brain scanned using functional magnetic
resonance imaging (fMRI) while she took a brain function test.
In the test, arrows pointing to the left or right popped up on
the right or left side of a screen, and the women had to press a
button to indicate the arrow's direction. That task is easier
when the arrow's direction matches its position on the screen
(such as a left-pointing arrow on the left side of the screen)
than when there's a conflict (for instance, the left-pointing
arrow on the right side of the screen). In the test, the arrows
come and go quickly; participants' scores are based on accuracy
and speed. The women with b