“What could be this strange eating disorder?”
A relative ever since being an infant has had issues taking a bottle and then eating solid foods as she grew older. She has almost no appetite for anything. Today she is 19 years old, around 5'9 - 5'11, weighs only 88lbs, and eats mostly liquid protein for nourishment. She complains of terrible chest pains nowadays. Her mother never did get a diagnosis in all that time. Something is definitely wrong with her physiology. What could it be?
Female | 19 years old
Complaint duration: 19yrs
Medications: Unknown
Conditions: Unkown
6 Answers
Eating d/o
See this link for some insight into your Q...
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/eating-disorders
and
https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/eating-disorders/what-are-eating-disorders
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/eating-disorders
and
https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/eating-disorders/what-are-eating-disorders
It's not possible to make a diagnosis. The person you are describing is dangerously underweight but it could be a psychological problem, eating disorder, malabsorption, a catabolic state, etc. Such a patient needs to be interviewed and examined by a physician to determine a course of action and consider testing as appropriate.
It seems like she probably have an eating disorder and missing quite a few nutrients in her diet. She should definitely be seen by a doctor and have full physical examination. Particularly the imbalance of potassium can lead to chest pain and irregularity of heart rhythm.
This information you provided suggests a seriously underweight person who needs a full medical assessment and diagnostic work up.
She needs to go to an eating disorder specialist.
