Exp Clin Endocrinol Diabetes 2014; 122 - P050
DOI: 10.1055/s-0034-1372067

Eating behaviour and weight problems in long-term survivors of childhood craniopharyngioma – results of the HIT ENDO trial

FP Postma 1, 2, A Hoffmann 1, U Gebhardt 1 HL Müller 1, Study committee of KRANIOPHARYNGEOM 2000/2007
  • 1Klinikum Oldenburg gGmbH, Department of Pediatrics, Oldenburg, Germany
  • 2University of Groningen, UMCG, Groningen, Netherlands

Background: Due to hypothalamic tumour involvement and/or treatment related hypothalamic damage, up to 75% of childhood craniopharyngioma patients (CP) develop hypothalamic obesity.

Methods: In this case-control study, eating behaviour and psychological assessment of weight problems in 102 CP patients, recruited between 1980 and 2001 in the HIT Endo trial, were analysed as well as a gender-, age- and BMI-matched healthy control group (n = 61). Assessment of eating behaviour was performed by the “Inventory for Eating Behaviour and Weight Problems (IEG)” questionnaire.

Results: CP patients were divided into a normal weight group (BMI≤+3SDS; n = 49) and an obese group (BMI>+3SD; n = 53). Obese CP showed less pathological eating behaviour for the IEG domains “food intake on special occasions” (p =,008), “eating as a means of coping with emotional stress” (p =,049), “eating style” (p =,000), “pressure to eat during childhood” (p =,007), “bulimia” (p =,024), “feelings of constraint whilst eating out” (p =,001), and “interpersonal seclusion” (p =,006) when compared to 37 BMI-matched obese controls. Only for the domain 'restrains due to being overweight' obese CP scored worse then matched overweight controls (p =,001). Obese and normal weight CP answered the IEG quite similar. The comparison of 49 normal weight CP with 24 normal weight matched controls showed similar results except for the domains “wating style” (p =,018), “pressure to eat during childhood” (p =,041) and “perfectionist and achievement of goals (,015), for which CP scored higher e.g. had less pathological findings.

Conclusion: Obese CP patients score better or non-different to obese controls on 22 of 23 IEG domains. We conclude that there is no disease-specific disturbance of eating behaviour in CP. We hypothesize, that severe obesity in CP might be the result of hypothalamic involvement/damage but not of disease-specific alterations in eating behaviour.