Subclinical versus formal eating disorders: Differentiating psychological features
1990
Bunnell, D.W. | Shenker, I.R. | Nussbaum, M.P. | Jacobson, M.S. | Cooper, P.
Sixty referrals to a Pediatric Eating Disorder clinic were compared on a number of demographic, clinical, and psychological variables. Twelve patients met definite diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa and 14 met criteria for a diagnosis of bulimia nervosa. Twenty-one patients had a subclinical form of anorexia nervosa and eight had subclinical bulimia nervosa. Five patients could not be classified. The subclinical and definite diagnostic groups were compared across a number of demographic, eating pathology, and general psychological variables. The results revealed a clear pattern of difference between the two bulimia nervosa groups on variables related to the regulation of affects and impulses. There was no clear pattern of difference between the definite and subclinical anorexia nervosa groups. The results suggest that the DSM-III-R criteria for anorexia nervosa may substantially underestimate the number of individuals with a psychologically distressing eating disorder, but provide tentative support for the maintenance of strict diagnostic criteria for bulimia nervosa.
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