Early response to treatment in adolescent bulimia nervosa

The purpose of this study was to determine if early response predicted remission at the end of a controlled trial.

Eighty adolescents with bulimia nervosa participated in an RCT comparing family-based treatment and individual supportive psychotherapy. Response to treatment was assessed via self-report of bingeing and purging. Remission was defined as abstinence from bingeing and purging for the last 28 days and measured by investigator-based interview, that is, the Eating Disorder Examination.

Receiver-operating characteristic analyses showed that, regardless of treatment, symptom reduction at session six predicted remission at posttreatment (AUC = 0.814 (p < .001)) and 6-month follow-up (AUC = 0.811 (p < .001)).

Results suggest that adolescents with BN who do not show early reductions in bulimic symptoms are unlikely to remit at posttreatment or follow-up.