Premium
Purging and nonpurging forms of bulimia nervosa in a community sample
Author(s) -
Garfinkel Paul E.,
Lin Elizabeth,
Goering Paula,
Spegg Cathy,
Goldbloom David S.,
Kennedy Sidney,
Kaplan Allan S.,
Woodside D. Blake
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
international journal of eating disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.785
H-Index - 138
eISSN - 1098-108X
pISSN - 0276-3478
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1098-108x(199611)20:3<231::aid-eat2>3.0.co;2-p
Subject(s) - bulimia nervosa , psychology , psychiatry , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , eating disorders
Objective Recent consensus on the subclassification of the eating disorder bulimia nervosa into purging and nonpurging forms is examined in the context of a large psychiatric epidemiological survey in Ontario, Canada. Method: Among a sample of 8,116 individuals, 62 met criteria for bulimia nervosa. Of these, the 17 who were of the purging subtype could be distinguished from the nonpurging group on a variety of parameters of comorbidity, family history, and childhood environment. Results: The purging subtype was distinguishable on the basis of early age of onset, and high rates of affective disorders and anxiety and alcoholism, sexual abuse, and parental discord. Discussion: The data support the taxonomy and point to the need for better understanding of the meaning of purging behavior. © 1996 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.