Psychological correlates of purging disorder as compared with other eating disorders: an exploratory investigation.
OBJECTIVE
Keel et al. introduced the diagnostic category of purging disorder (PD), an eating disorder characterized by recurring purging behaviors in the absence of objective binges. The current study sought to investigate psychological correlates among individuals with a lifetime diagnosis of PD as compared to those with other eating disorders, and those with no eating disorder.


METHODS
The current sample included 294 ethnically diverse undergraduate women. Subjects diagnosed with different types of eating disorders [i.e., anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), binge eating disorder (BED), and purging disorder (PD)] were compared to one another, as well as to individuals with no eating disorder on a variety of indices.


RESULTS
Women with PD displayed similar levels of drive for thinness as women with AN and BED. Individuals with BN and BED exhibited anxiety levels significantly higher than those with PD. Those with PD displayed levels of impulsivity that were significantly higher than those of individuals with AN or BED, but significantly lower than those of individuals with BN. They also displayed similar levels of bulimic symptoms as those with AN and BED; however, analysis of item 53 on the EDI revealed that those with PD had similar levels of purging ideation as those with BN. Women with any eating disorder diagnosis were more likely to have a comorbid Axis I disorder than women in the non-eating disorder group.


CONCLUSIONS
Our data replicated and extended the findings of Keel et al. and gave further support to the validity and distinctiveness of PD.
Fink
Erin L
EL
Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 32306, USA.
Smith
April R
AR
Gordon
Kathryn H
KH
Holm-Denoma
Jill M
JM
Joiner
Thomas E
TE
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000145:classification* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D015144:Southeastern United States