title: Muscle dysmorphia: a South African sample.
abstract: It has recently been suggested that muscle dysmorphia, a pathological preoccupation with muscularity, is a subtype of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). There are, however, few studies of the phenomenology of this putative entity. Twenty-eight amateur competitive body builders in the Western Cape, South Africa, were studied using a structured diagnostic interview that incorporated demographic data, body-building activities and clinical questions focusing on muscle dysmorphia and BDD. There was a high rate of muscle dysmorphia in the sample (53.6%). Those with muscle dysmorphia were significantly more likely to have comorbid BDD based on preoccupations other than muscularity (33%). Use of the proposed diagnostic criteria for muscle dysmorphia indicated that this is a common and relevant entity. Its conceptualization as a subtype of BDD seems valid. The disorder deserves additional attention from both clinicians and researchers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Stellenbosch, Cape Town, South Africa.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Hitzeroth
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wessels
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zungu-Dirwayi
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Oosthuizen
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Stein
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D013019:South Africa; D014891:Weight Lifting / Q000523:psychology*