Comparison of lactate-induced anxiety in bulimic patients and healthy controls

Clinical symptomatology and diagnostic interview studies suggest that patients with bulimic disorder have some characteristics in common with patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder. The purpose of this study was to compare sodium lactate-induced physiological responses and anxiety symptoms in hospitalized normal weight bulimic patients and healthy controls. Bulimic patients had significantly elevated anxiety ratings at baseline, and showed a trend toward greater increases in anxiety ratings after lactate administration. Lactate-induced anxiety did not provoke an urge to binge in the bulimic patients. In keeping with the specificity of lactate-induced panic attacks in panic disorder, none of the bulimic subjects experienced a panic attack during lactate infusion.