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The relationship of partial syndrome eating disorders to anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa1

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

I. F. Dancyger*
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Psychology, Ontario Institute of Studies in Education and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
P. E. Garfinkel
Affiliation:
Department of Applied Psychology, Ontario Institute of Studies in Education and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
*
2Address for correspondence: Dr Ida F. Dancyger, Department of Psychology, New York Hospital–Cornell Medical Center, Westchester Division, 21 Bloomingdale Road, White Plains, NY 10605, USA.

Synopsis

A variety of sociocultural, familial and individual features associated with the eating disorders were examined in subjects with full syndrome (FS) and partial syndrome (PS) eating disorders and in normal high school students. The EAT-26 was administered to 995 high school students. This was followed by individual interviews with those who scored in the symptomatic range. Fifty-one students with PS eating disorders, 57 students without eating disorders (normal controls) and 30 hospital patients with FS, anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa were compared on subscales of the Eating Disorder Inventory, the Diagnostic Survey for Eating Disorders and the Beck Depression Inventory. The three groups displayed statistically significant differences on dimensions of EDI subscales Ineffectiveness and Interoceptive Awareness and also with respect to depression, history of being overweight and past history of emotional problems, as well as having mothers with medical illnesses. On these characteristics, the FS subjects displayed higher levels than the PS subjects, who in turn were higher than the NC subjects. The PS subjects displayed elevations on Body Dissatisfaction (EDI subscale), past medical illnesses, and mother's over-concern with eating and weight. These data support a continuum model of the eating disorders, but a continuum of multiple associated features rather than of dieting.

Type
Original Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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Footnotes

1

Part of this paper was presented in a poster session by I. F. D. at the International Conference on Eating Disorders, New York, USA on 24–26 April 1992.

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