Breaking the cycle: a pilot study on autonomous Digital CBTe for recurrent binge eating.

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Digital Health
• Eating Disorders

Background:

• Few individuals with eating disorders receive evidence-based psychological treatment.
• Shame and therapist shortages hinder treatment access for binge eating disorders.
• Digital interventions may overcome barriers to care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the acceptability and effectiveness of a new digital intervention based on enhanced cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT-E).
• To assess the impact of Digital CBTe on binge eating and related impairments.

Main Methods:

• 110 adults with recurrent binge eating were recruited via an eating disorder charity website.
• Participants engaged in a 12-session, autonomous Digital CBTe program over 8-12 weeks.
• Outcomes included eating disorder features and secondary impairment, measured at baseline, post-intervention, and 6-month follow-up.

Main Results:

• 63% of participants completed the Digital CBTe program.
• Completers (n=55) showed significant decreases in binge eating and psychopathology, maintained at follow-up (large effect sizes).
• Intent-to-treat analysis also revealed significant improvements with medium-to-large effect sizes.

Conclusions:

• A significant proportion of completers experienced marked improvements with Digital CBTe.
• Findings support further trials to test the clinical and cost-effectiveness of autonomous Digital CBTe.
• Digital interventions show potential for improving access to eating disorder treatments.