Frédérique R. E. Smink

Epidemiology, course, and outcome of eating disorders

Purpose of review To review the recent literature about the epidemiology, course, and outcome of eating disorders in accordance with the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). Recent findings The residual category ‘eating disorder not otherwise specified’ (EDNOS) was the most common DSM-IV eating disorder diagnosis in both clinical and community samples. Several studies have confirmed that the DSM-5 criteria for eating disorders effectively reduce the proportion of EDNOS diagnoses. The lifetime prevalence of DSM-5 anorexia nervosa among women might be up to 4%, and of bulimia nervosa 2%. In a cross-national survey, the average lifetime prevalence of binge eating disorder (BED) was 2%. Both anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are associated with increased mortality. Data on long-term outcome, including mortality, are limited for BED. Follow-up studies of BED are scarce; remission rates in randomized controlled trials ranged from 19 to 65% across studies. On a community level, 5-year recovery rates for DSM-5 anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are 69 and 55%, respectively; little is known about the course and outcome of BED in the community. Summary Applying the DSM-5 criteria effectively reduces the frequency of the residual diagnosis EDNOS, by lowering the threshold for anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, and adding BED as a specified eating disorder. Course and outcome studies of both anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa show that no significant differences exist between DSM-5 and DSM-IV definitions.

Three decades of eating disorders in Dutch primary care: decreasing incidence of bulimia nervosa but not of anorexia nervosa

BACKGROUND Whether the incidence of eating disorders in Western, industrialized countries has changed over time has been the subject of much debate. The purpose of this primary-care study was to examine changes in the incidence of eating disorders in The Netherlands during the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. METHOD A nationwide network of general practitioners (GPs), serving a representative sample (~1%) of the total Dutch population, recorded newly diagnosed patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN) in their practice during 1985-1989, 1995-1999, and 2005-2009. GPs are key players in the Dutch healthcare system, as their written referral is mandatory in order to get access to specialized (mental) healthcare, covered by health insurance. Health insurance is virtually universal in The Netherlands (99% of the population). A substantial number of GPs participated in all three study periods, during which the same case identification criteria were used and the same psychiatrist was responsible for making the final diagnoses. Incidence rates were calculated and for comparison between periods, incidence rate ratios. RESULTS The overall incidence rate of BN decreased significantly in the past three decades (from 8.6 per 100,000 person-years in 1985-1989 to 6.1 in 1995-1999, and 3.2 in 2005-2009). The overall incidence of AN remained fairly stable during three decades, i.e. 7.4 per 100,000 person-years in 1985-1989, 7.8 in 1995-1999, and 6.0 in 2005-2009. CONCLUSIONS The incidence rate of BN decreased significantly over the past three decades, while the overall incidence rate of AN remained stable.

The incidence of anorexia nervosa in Netherlands Antilles immigrants in the Netherlands

OBJECTIVE Previously we found that the incidence of anorexia nervosa (AN) in the general population was much lower in the Netherlands Antilles than in the Netherlands. As a follow-up we compared the incidence of AN in the Netherlands in persons from the Netherlands Antilles to native Dutch. METHOD A national register of psychiatric hospital admissions was screened for cases of AN. Incidence rates (IR) and incidence rate ratios (IRR) were computed. RESULTS The IR of AN was 1.32 per 100 000 person years (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.53-2.71) for Netherlands Antilleans and 1.09 (95% CI: 1.04-1.15) for native Dutch. The age- and sex-adjusted IRR was 1.21 (95% CI: 0.58-2.54). CONCLUSION Contrary to the Netherlands Antilles, in the Netherlands AN is as common among Netherlands Antilleans as among native Dutch. Exposure to the Western idealization of thinness is a risk factor for the development of AN, possibly in interaction with migration-related stress.

Attentional Bias for Reward and Punishment in Overweight and Obesity: The TRAILS Study

More than 80% of obese adolescents will become obese adults, and it is therefore important to enhance insight into characteristics that underlie the development and maintenance of overweight and obesity at a young age. The current study is the first to focus on attentional biases towards rewarding and punishing cues as potentially important factors. Participants were young adolescents (N = 607) who were followed from the age of 13 until the age of 19, and completed a motivational game indexing the attentional bias to general cues of reward and punishment. Additionally, self-reported reward and punishment sensitivity was measured. This study showed that attentional biases to cues that signal reward or punishment and self-reported reward and punishment sensitivity were not related to body mass index or the change in body mass index over six years in adolescents. Thus, attentional bias to cues of reward and cues of punishment, and self-reported reward and punishment sensitivity, do not seem to be crucial factors in the development and maintenance of overweight and obesity in adolescents. Exploratory analyses of the current study suggest that the amount of effort to gain reward and to avoid punishment may play a role in the development and maintenance of overweight and obesity. However, since the effort measure was a construct based on face validity and has not been properly validated, more studies are necessary before firm conclusions can be drawn.

Self-esteem and peer-perceived social status in early adolescence and prediction of eating pathology in young adulthood

Abstract Objective Self‐esteem is implied as a factor in the development of eating disorders. In adolescence peers have an increasing influence. Support for the role of self‐esteem in eating disorders is ambiguous and little is known about the influence of social status as judged by others. The present study investigates whether self‐esteem and peer status in early adolescence are associated with eating pathology in young adulthood. Method This study is part of TRAILS, a longitudinal cohort study on mental health and social development from preadolescence into adulthood. At age 11, participants completed the Self‐Perception Profile for Children, assessing global self‐esteem and self‐perceptions regarding social acceptance, physical appearance, and academic competence. At age 13, peer status among classmates was assessed regarding likeability, physical attractiveness, academic performance, and popularity in a subsample of 1,007 participants. The Eating Disorder Diagnostic Scale was administered at age 22. The present study included peer‐nominated participants with completed measures of self‐perception at age 11 and eating pathology at age 22 (N = 732; 57.8% female). Results In a combined model, self‐perceived physical attractiveness at age 11 and peer popularity at age 13 were inversely correlated with eating pathology at 22 years, while likeability by peers at age 13 was positively related to eating pathology. Discussion Both self‐perceptions and peer status in early adolescence are significant predictors of eating pathology in young adults. Specific measures of self‐esteem and peer‐perceived status may be more relevant to the prediction of eating pathology than a global measure of self‐esteem.

Daling boulimia nervosa in huisartsenpraktijk

SamenvattingEetstoornissen, zoals anorexia nervosa en boulimia nervosa, zijn ernstige psychiatrische aandoeningen die meestal ontstaan in de adolescentie. Bij anorexia nervosa is – naast voedselbeperking en een gestoord lichaamsbeeld – amenorroe vaak een van de vroege symptomen. Over de oorzaken van eetstoornissen is relatief weinig bekend.