Music and art therapy combined with cognitive behavioral therapy to treat adolescent anorexia patients

Objective: To investigate the efficacy and feasibility of music and art therapy combined with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in the treatment of adolescent patients with anorexia. Methods: A total of 77 patients admitted to our hospital from August 2018 to October 2019 were recruited as the study cohort, but 11 patients who dropped out of the study were excluded. The data from the 66 patients were collected for a statistical analysis. There were 31 patients in the control group and 35 patients in the treatment group. After the intervention, the body weight, cognitive and behavioral ability, emotional reaction, and treatment satisfaction changes were compared and analyzed in the two groups. Results: The treatment group had a significantly lower dropout rate and higher overall treatment satisfaction than the control group. After the intervention, the body weights, body mass indexes (BMI), and abdominal subcutaneous fat thicknesses were increased in the two groups, and the increase in the treatment group was significantly higher than it was in the control group (P < 0.05). After the intervention, the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire 6.0 (EDE-Q-6.0), the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scores were significantly lower than they were before the intervention, and the scores in the treatment group were significantly lower than they were in the control group (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Music and art therapy combined with CBT can effectively improve patients' recognition and acceptance of the treatment, the therapeutic effects, and the adverse emotional reactions (e.g., depression and anxiety), and help patients establish the correct cognition regarding food, body shape, and weight.