Comparison between the SCOFF Questionnaire and the Eating Attitudes Test in patients with eating disorders

The SCOFF was developed as a simple, five-question screening tool for eating disorders to be used in primary care. The aim of this study was to examine the appropriateness of each question in comparison with the Eating Attitudes Test-26.

The SCOFF and the EAT-26 were administered to 80 patients with eating disorders who had received treatment from May through October 2003 in Japan.

The scores of the SCOFF and those of the EAT-26 were positively correlated (P<0.001), and each question of the SCOFF was strongly associated with different items of the EAT-26. The detection rates with the SCOFF of the patients with anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa and that of the patients with eating disorders not otherwise specified (EDNOS) were 96.2 and 48.1%, respectively. The scores of the SCOFF and the values of body mass index were significantly correlated (P=0.041), and the detection rate with the SCOFF of patients with low body weight and EDNOS was low (10%).

Each question of the SCOFF has been selected appropriately for reflecting characteristics of eating disorders, although one question about body weight loss should be modified to detect patients with anorexia nervosa more accurately.