Relationship between EDNOS and its subtypes and borderline personality disorder.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS) and four well-defined subtypes of this disorder found in a sample of female borderline patients.


METHODS
The lifetime prevalence of EDNOS and its various subtypes among 233 female borderline patients and 46 female Axis II comparison subjects was assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R Axis I disorders.


RESULTS
Thirty-three percent of female borderline patients met DSM-III-R criteria for EDNOS at some point in their lives. Of these 76 women, 20% reported a pattern of restricting without low weight, 37% reported a pattern of binging without purging, 37% reported a pattern of purging without binging, and 33% reported a pattern of low weight without loss of menses. However, less than 25% of these 76 borderline women had ever met criteria for anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study suggest that EDNOS is a separate cluster of eating disorders among borderline women, rather than a prodromal or residual form of a more clear-cut case of anorexia or bulimia nervosa.
Laboratory for the Study of Adult Development, McLean Hospital, 115 Mill Street, Belmont, MA 02478, USA.
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MF
Marino
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MC
Zanarini
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012720:Severity of Illness Index