This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Go to /pro/cpd-dashboard page

This page is worth 0.05 CPD credits. CPD dashboard

Go to /account/subscription-details page

This page is worth 0.05 CPD credits. Upgrade to Pro

Anorexia

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Anorexia is the absence of appetite, from the Greek; an, meaning the opposite of, and orexis meaning appetite.

It is a very non-specific symptom. Anorexia may be present in:

  • malignancy
    • localised to gastrointestinal tract e.g. carcinoma stomach, carcinoma colon
    • disseminated malignancy
  • infection e.g.:
    • localised to gastrointestinal tract e.g. appendicitis, intestinal tuberculosis
    • distant sites e.g. pneumonia
  • inflammatory diseases e.g.:
    • Crohn's disease
    • Bechet's disease
  • right ventricular failure
  • metabolic diseases:
    • uraemia
    • diabetic ketoacidosis
    • lactic acidosis
    • hypercalcaemia
    • hyponatraemia
  • drugs:
    • cytotoxic chemotherapy
  • psychiatric disorders such as anorexia nervosa

It may also be a feature of many other diseases.


Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.