Cutoff scores of the Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire for the German population.

OBJECTIVE: The Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q) is one of the most widely used self-report measures for the assessment of eating disorder (ED) symptomatology. However, proposed cutoff scores that may indicate the presence of an ED have been heterogeneous. Therefore, the current study derived cutoff scores from two large samples: one representative for the German population and one composed of persons with EDs at admission to inpatient treatment. METHOD: Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used with the EDE-Q global score as independent variable and group (controls: n = 2519, patients: n = 2038) as dependent variable. These analyses were also conducted separately with the patient group divided into persons with anorexia nervosa (AN; n = 1456), bulimia nervosa (BN; n = 370), and other EDs (n = 212) and after matching groups for age and sex distribution. RESULTS: The EDE-Q global score discriminated well between controls and patients (AUC >91%, sensitivity >.84, specificity >.79). A score of 1.6 discriminated best between controls and patients in general and persons with AN in particular. Optimal thresholds for discriminating between controls and persons with BN and other EDs ranged between scores of 1.8 and 2.4. DISCUSSION: In the German population, cutoff scores between 1.6 and 2.4 may be used to screen for the presence or absence of an ED or evaluate treatment outcome, with slightly higher cutoff scores for persons with BN and other EDs than for persons with AN. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE: Questionnaire scores have little value when it is unclear which scores indicate the likely presence of an ED, as such scores can be used to estimate the prevalence of or screen for EDs in the general population and evaluate outcome at the end of ED treatment. The current study indicates a score around 2 on the EDE-Q as an optimal threshold for this.

On the prevalence of 'food addiction' in persons with bulimia nervosa.

A meta-analysis by Praxedes and colleagues published in this journal reports that the prevalence of 'food addiction' as measured with the Yale Food Addiction Scale is lower than 50% in persons with bulimia nervosa and higher in persons with binge eating disorder. However, closely examining the supplementary material of that article reveals that these numbers cannot possibly be correct. Instead, most studies indicate that the prevalence of 'food addiction' is higher than 80% in persons with bulimia nervosa and, thus, higher than in persons with other eating disorders.

Sleep quality in persons with mental disorders: Changes during inpatient treatment across 10 diagnostic groups.

Sleep disturbances have been documented across a range of mental disorders, particularly depression. However, studies that have examined sleep quality in large samples of different diagnostic groups and that report how sleep quality changes during inpatient treatment have been scarce. This retrospective, observational study examined changes in sleep quality during inpatient treatment at a psychosomatic hospital in Germany from admission to discharge as a function of 10 diagnostic groups. Data of 11,226 inpatients were analysed who completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index as part of the routine diagnostic assessment at admission and discharge. All diagnostic groups showed impaired sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score > 5). Patients with trauma-related disorders had the lowest sleep quality and patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder had the highest sleep quality. While sleep quality significantly improved in each diagnostic group, changes differed in size, with patients with trauma-related disorders showing the smallest improvement and patients with eating disorders showing the largest improvement. The current study documents impaired sleep quality in inpatients with mental disorders and shows that sleep problems are a transdiagnostic feature in this population. Results also resonate with earlier suggestions that sleep disturbances represent a key feature of trauma-related disorders in particular and the need for trauma-specific sleep interventions. Although sleep quality significantly improved during disorder-specific inpatient treatment in all diagnostic groups, average scores were still clinically elevated at discharge. Thus, a future avenue would be to examine whether adding sleep-specific treatment elements fosters both short- and long-term success in the treatment of mental disorders.

Comparing ICD-11 and DSM-5 eating disorder diagnoses with the Munich eating and feeding disorder questionnaire (ED-Quest).

OBJECTIVE: The new ICD-11 eating disorders (ED) guidelines are similar to the DSM-5 criteria. One difference to the DSM-5 is the inclusion of subjective binges in the definition of bulimia nervosa (BN) and binge-eating disorder (BED). The aim of this study was to identify differences between the ICD-11 guidelines and DSM-5 ED criteria, which could impact access to medical care and early treatment. METHOD: Data of 3863 ED inpatients who completed the Munich Eating and Feeding Disorder Questionnaire were analyzed using standardized diagnostic algorithms for DSM-5 and ICD-11. RESULTS: Agreement of diagnoses was high (Krippendorff's α = .88, 95% CI [.86, .89]) for anorexia nervosa (AN; 98.9%), BN (97.2%) and BED (100%), and lower for other feeding and eating disorders (OFED; 75.2%). Of the 721 patients with a DSM-5 OFED, 19.8% were diagnosed with AN, BN or BED by the ICD-11 diagnostic algorithm, reducing the number of OFED diagnoses. One-hundred and twenty-one patients received an ICD-11 diagnosis of BN or BED because of subjective binges. DISCUSSION: For over 90% of patients, applying either DSM-5 or ICD-11 diagnostic criteria/guidelines resulted in the same full-threshold ED diagnosis. Sub-threshold and feeding disorders exhibited a discrepancy of 25%. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: For about 98% of inpatients, the ICD-11 and DSM-5 agree on the same specified eating disorder diagnosis. This is important when comparing diagnoses made by different diagnostic systems. Including subjective binges in the definition of bulimia nervosa and binge-eating disorder contributes to improved ED diagnoses. Clarifying the wording of diagnostic criteria at several places could further increase this agreement.

Hedonic Overeating-Questionnaire: Exploring interactive effects between wanting, liking, and dyscontrol on body mass index.

The Hedonic Overeating-Questionnaire is a brief self-report measure for the trait assessment of liking (pleasure to eat; consummatory reward component), wanting (food craving; anticipatory reward component), and dyscontrol (loss of control over eating). In the original validation study, higher scores on each of the three subscales related to higher body mass index (BMI). However, theories on food reward and self-regulation suggest that overeating and obesity may also result from interactions between these aspects. Therefore, we reanalyzed the data of the original, cross-sectional study (N = 2504, 53% female) and explored whether liking, wanting, and dyscontrol scores interactively predicted BMI. Indeed, there was a significant interaction effect Wanting × Dyscontrol on BMI such that higher dyscontrol scores related to higher BMI, particularly at high wanting scores. The other two-way interactions and the three-way interaction were not significant. Results do not support certain theories on food reward (e.g., the incentive-sensitization theory of addiction and its application to obesity), which would suggest an interactive effect between liking and wanting on BMI. However, they do support dual systems models of self-regulation that suggest that overeating and obesity result from an interplay of strong bottom-up impulses (here: wanting) and weak top-down control (here: dyscontrol).

Distance to home does not influence treatment success during and after inpatient treatment in adolescents with anorexia nervosa.

Current treatment guidelines recommend that inpatients with eating disorders-particularly adolescents with anorexia nervosa-should receive treatment at facilities within close distance to their home. However, whether distance to home actually influences short- and long-term treatment outcome in adolescents with anorexia nervosa has not been investigated yet. We re-analyzed data at admission, discharge, and 1-year follow up from a recent study with N = 142 female, adolescent inpatients with anorexia nervosa. Distance to home did not moderate changes in body weight, eating disorder symptoms, depressive symptoms, compulsive exercise, and life satisfaction. This is the first analysis that indicates that specialized inpatient treatment for adolescents with anorexia nervosa is effective both close to and away from home.

Does the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic actually cause dysfunctional dietary behavior? A comment on Dinse et al. (2023).

Based on a recent cross-sectional study using self-report questionnaires, Dinse and colleagues (2023) claim that this study shows that "the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic causes a dysfunctional dietary behavior" (title) and that the "data clearly show that psychological burdens affect an individual's dietary behavior" (abstract). This commentary argues that these claims are unfounded. Specifically, it highlights some issues regarding the statistical analyses that refer to artificial categorization of continuous variables, use of covariates, and interpreting differential associations between two variables as a function of third variables, which would require formal tests of interaction effects. Importantly, not only the cross-sectional nature of the study but also the wording used in the questionnaires prevents drawing any causal inferences about associations between study variables. Thus, the results of this study neither indicate that the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic causes dysfunctional dietary behavior nor that such a dietary behavior is affected by psychological distress.

Pathways between childhood maltreatment and life satisfaction in adolescents with eating disorders: A network analysis.

OBJECTIVE: This study explored the association between Childhood maltreatment (CM) experiences and life satisfaction in adolescents with eating disorders (EDs). METHODS: Adolescent inpatients with EDs completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, the Satisfaction With Life Scale, the Brief Symptom Inventory and the Eating Disorder Inventory-2 at admission (n = 361) and discharge (n = 354). A network analysis was conducted to identify the shortest pathways between different types of CM and life satisfaction at admission and discharge. RESULTS: General psychopathology, life satisfaction, and ED symptoms improved from admission to discharge. At admission, emotional abuse and emotional neglect were included in the pathway between sexual/physical abuse and life satisfaction. Emotional neglect was directly connected with life satisfaction while emotional abuse was connected through feeling disliked by others, feelings of inferiority and worthlessness. At discharge, only the direct negative connection between emotional neglect and perception of excellent conditions in the life persisted. CONCLUSIONS: Emotional maltreatment experiences and general psychopathology, but not disordered eating symptoms, are involved in the association between sexual/physical CM and life satisfaction in adolescents with EDs. Emotional neglect may affect life satisfaction regardless of symptoms severity. These findings inform clinicians for assessment and treatment of maltreated adolescents with EDs.

Resilience and depressive symptoms in inpatients with depression: A cross-lagged panel model.

BACKGROUND: Resilience-the ability to bounce back or quickly recover from stress-has been found to predict treatment outcome in patients with mental disorders such as depression. The current study aimed to test whether resilience itself changes during treatment and whether resilience exclusively predicts changes in depressive symptoms or whether depressive symptoms also predict changes in resilience. METHODS: Inpatients with depression (N = 2165; average length of stay M = 60 days, SD = 32) completed the Brief Resilience Scale and the Patient Health Questionnaire Depression Scale at admission and discharge, scores of which were used to run a cross-lagged panel model. RESULTS: Resilience increased and depressive symptoms decreased from admission to discharge. Cross-sectionally, higher resilience was related to lower depressive symptoms at admission and at discharge. Prospectively, higher resilience at admission predicted stronger decreases in depressive symptoms, and higher depressive symptoms at admission predicted smaller increases in resilience. LIMITATIONS: Self-report questionnaires may potentially be biased (e.g., through recall bias, social desirability, or demand effects). CONCLUSIONS: The current study further supports that resilience is related not only to fewer mental health problems cross-sectionally but also is sensitive to change and a predictor of treatment outcome in patients with mental disorders. Given this pivotal role in mental health, the current findings highlight the importance of prevention and intervention approaches for promoting resilience in the general population and in persons with mental disorders in particular.

Comparing illness duration and age as predictors of treatment outcome in female inpatients with anorexia nervosa.

It has been widely assumed that longer illness duration predicts poorer treatment outcome in persons with anorexia nervosa (AN). However, studies on the prognostic effects of illness duration have produced mixed results. Thus, the aim of the current study was to examine the relationship between illness duration and short-term treatment outcome in a large sample of female inpatients with AN (n = 902, aged 12-73 years). Treatment outcome variables included body mass index, therapist-rated global functioning (Global Assessment of Functioning scale and Clinical Global Impression-Improvement scale) and subscales of the Eating Disorder Inventory-2. Longer illness duration predicted smaller weight gain, smaller improvements in global functioning, and smaller decreases in self-reported eating disorder symptoms. However, illness duration was almost perfectly correlated with patients' age (r = .81, 95% CI [.76, .85]), and comparing regression models revealed that models using either illness duration or age were indistinguishable. Results suggest that longer illness duration does indeed relate to worse short-term treatment outcome in inpatients with AN. This effect, however, does not add significant information above and beyond patients' age and, thus, the importance of illness duration for anticipating treatment outcome both in research and in clinical practice must be critically examined.

Early within-person weight gain and variability during inpatient treatment for anorexia nervosa: Age-dependent effects on treatment outcome.

OBJECTIVE: Early weight gain during inpatient treatment for anorexia nervosa (AN) is a dynamic process characterised by within-person variability that may be age-dependent. We examined whether age moderates the effect of within-person weight gain and variability on treatment outcome. METHOD: Within-person level estimates of N = 2881 underweight adolescents and adults with AN for daily average weight gain (linear slope) and variability (root mean squared errors) were obtained using random-effects modelling. Between-person level regression analyses were calculated to assess effects on weight, eating disorder psychopathology and attaining normal body weight (body mass index [BMI]: 18.5-25 kg/m2 ). RESULTS: Higher weight gain during first 2 weeks of inpatient treatment predicted higher weight, lower drive for thinness and lower body dissatisfaction at discharge, but not lower bulimic symptoms. Moreover, it predicted a higher probability of discharge weight within normal range. Younger age was associated with stronger effects of early weight gain on weight, drive for thinness and body dissatisfaction at discharge. Weight variability was not associated with any outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Age moderated effects of early weight gain on treatment outcomes, with larger effects for younger patients. Weight variability alone did not influence treatment across age and should be of lesser clinical concern during early inpatient treatment.

On the measurement and correlates of plate clearing: examining a German version of the Plate Clearing Tendency Scale.

PURPOSE: Plate clearing-eating a meal in its entirety-is common and may be a factor contributing to obesity. For the assessment of individual differences in plate clearing tendencies, Robinson et al. (Obesity 23:301-304, 2015) developed the Plate Clearing Tendency Scale (PCTS). However, little is known about the psychometric properties of this scale and its correlates. METHODS: In the current study, participants (N = 207, 76% female) completed a German translation of the PCTS and other questionnaires online. RESULTS: A one-factor structure had good model fit and the PCTS had acceptable internal reliability and good test-retest reliability across an average of four and a half weeks. Higher plate clearing tendencies related to more frequent parental encouragement to clear one's plate in childhood and to stronger food waste concerns but were unrelated to sex, body weight, self-control, and eating behaviors. However, higher plate clearing tendencies related to higher body weight in unsuccessful dieters. CONCLUSION: The current study shows that the PCTS has sound psychometric properties and that plate clearing tendencies appear to be largely driven by food waste concerns and not by automatic eating habits or low eating-related self-control. In dieters, however, high plate clearing tendencies may contribute to low dieting success and hinder weight loss. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: No level of evidence, basic science.

Adolescent inpatients with anorexia nervosa can roughly predict their own weight trajectories after discharge.

Most adolescents with anorexia nervosa (AN) gain a substantial amount of weight during inpatient treatment, but many relapse after discharge. Therefore, there is a need to identify variables that predict weight changes after treatment. The current study tested whether such a variable may be patients' own predictions about their future weight. Data of 120 female adolescent inpatients with AN were available at discharge and one-year follow-up. Patients' own predictions about their future weight trajectories predicted their actual weight change after discharge: those who indicated that they would gain weight, gained weight, those who indicated that they would lose weight, lost weight, and those who indicated to maintain their weight, had no weight change on average. Similarly, expected weight change in kilograms correlated positively with actual weight change after discharge. Thus, patients who expect that they will lose weight again should receive intensified aftercare that fosters motivation to change.

Inpatient treatment of anorexia nervosa in adolescents: A 1-year follow-up study.

OBJECTIVE: Inpatient treatment effectively increases body weight and decreases eating disorder symptoms in adolescents with anorexia nervosa (AN). However, there is a high risk of relapse within the first year after discharge, which calls for investigating long-term treatment success and its moderators. METHOD: Female adolescent inpatients with AN (N = 142) were assessed, of which 85% participated at 1-year follow-up. Dependent variables were body mass index percentiles, eating disorder symptoms, depressive symptoms, compulsive exercise and life satisfaction. RESULTS: On average, body weight increased and eating disorder symptoms and depressive symptoms decreased from admission to discharge and remained stable at follow-up. Compulsive exercise decreased and life satisfaction increased from admission to discharge and even improved further at follow-up. Age, duration of illness, previous inpatient treatments, length of stay and readmission after discharge moderated changes in several outcome variables. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms the high effectiveness of inpatient treatment for adolescents with AN and demonstrates that treatment effects remain stable or even improve further within the first year after discharge. However, subgroups of patients (e.g., those with an older age, longer duration of illness, and previous inpatient treatments) require special attention during inpatient treatment and aftercare to prevent relapse.

Using bodily postures in the treatment of anorexia nervosa: Effects of power posing on interoception and affective states.

OBJECTIVE: Power posing involves the adoption of an expansive bodily posture. This study examined whether power posing could benefit individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) and women with normal weight in regards to interoceptive ability and affective states. METHOD: Participants included 50 inpatients and outpatients with AN as well as 51 normal-weight women. Interoceptive accuracy (IAcc), measured by the heartbeat tracking task and interoceptive sensibility (IS), measured by confidence ratings, were assessed at baseline, after a single power posing session and after 1 week of daily training. Also, the short-term effects of power posing on subjective feelings of dominance, pleasantness, and arousal were investigated. RESULTS: Both groups increased in their IAcc after one power posing session. Also, there was a significant main effect of time on feelings of dominance and pleasantness in the short-term. Women with AN displayed lower levels of IS, dominance, and pleasantness as well as higher levels of arousal than women without AN. DISCUSSION: These findings suggest that power posing has the potential to increase IAcc, subjective feelings of power and pleasant affect in the short-term. Further research should investigate which mechanisms foster the effectiveness of this intervention to tailor it to the needs of women with AN.

Reconsidering the use of cut-off scores for the Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire.

The Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire (EDE-Q) is one of the most widely used self-report measures for the assessment of eating disorder psychopathology. Numerous studies have provided norm data for different populations and suggested possible cut-off values for the EDE-Q global score that may indicate the presence of an eating disorder. This commentary argues against the unquestioned use of such cut-off scores as their application may often be unnecessary, disadvantageous, or inappropriate.

Orthorexic tendencies moderate the relationship between semi-vegetarianism and depressive symptoms.

PURPOSE: Vegetarianism and semi-vegetarianism (i.e., overly vegetarian diet with rare consumption of meat) have been repeatedly linked with depression. As the nature of this association is unclear, we explored whether orthorexic (i.e., pathologically healthful eating) tendencies and ecological/ethical motives to follow a vegetarian diet may moderate the relationship between (semi-)vegetarian diets and depressive symptoms. METHODS: Five-hundred eleven adults (63.4% females; 71.2% omnivores, 19.2% semi-vegetarians, 9.6% vegetarians) completed the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) questionnaire-measuring depressive symptoms-and the Düsseldorf Orthorexia Scale (DOS)-measuring orthorexic tendencies. Based on respective questions, participants were categorized as omnivores, semi-vegetarians, and vegetarians (including vegans) and were asked to indicate whether they chose their diet based on ecological/ethical motives. Moderation analyses were carried out with PROCESS. RESULTS: Adjusted for age, sex, and body mass index, there was a statistically significant interaction effect between diet (omnivore vs. semi-vegetarianism vs. vegetarianism) and DOS scores when predicting PHQ depression scores. At low or medium DOS scores, diets did not differ in PHQ depression scores (all ps > 0.05). At high DOS scores, however, semi-vegetarians had higher PHQ depression scores than both omnivores (p = 0.002) and vegetarians (p < 0.001). The interaction between diet and ecological/ethical eating motives when predicting PHQ depression scores was not statistically significant (p = 0.41). CONCLUSION: Semi-vegetarians with strong orthorexic tendencies show more depressive symptoms than omnivores and vegetarians. The complex nature of the relationship between vegetarianism and depression requires further investigation. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III, case-control analytic studies.

Seasonal and subtype differences in body mass index at admission in inpatients with anorexia nervosa.

OBJECTIVE: In the general population, body weight is-on average-higher in the winter than in the summer. In patients with anorexia nervosa (AN), however, the opposite pattern has been reported. Yet, only a handful of studies exist to date that suffer from small sample sizes and inconsistent results. Therefore, the current study examined seasonal effects on body weight in a large sample of patients with AN to dissolve previous inconsistencies. METHOD: Clinical records of N = 606 inpatients (95.4% female) who received AN treatment at the Schoen Clinic Roseneck (Prien am Chiemsee, Germany) between 2014 and 2019 were analyzed. RESULTS: Patients with restrictive type AN had lower body mass index at admission in the winter than in the summer. This difference was not found for patients with binge/purge type AN and patients with atypical AN. DISCUSSION: Individuals with restrictive type AN show seasonal variations in body weight that are opposite to seasonal variations in body weight in individuals without AN. These seasonal effects are specific to the restrictive subtype and cannot be found for the binge/purge or atypical subtypes. Future studies that replicate this effect in other cultures or latitudes and that examine the mediating mechanisms are needed.

Eating disorders in times of the COVID-19 pandemic-Results from an online survey of patients with anorexia nervosa.

OBJECTIVE: The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting public restrictions pose a psychological burden for humans worldwide and may be particularly detrimental for individuals with mental disorders. Therefore, the current study explored effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on eating disorder (ED) symptoms and other psychological aspects in former inpatients with anorexia nervosa (AN). METHOD: One-hundred and fifty-nine patients with AN-discharged from inpatient treatment in 2019-completed an online survey on contact history with COVID-19, changes in ED symptoms and other psychological aspects, health care utilization, and strategies patients employed to cope during the pandemic. RESULTS: Approximately 70% of patients reported that eating, shape and weight concerns, drive for physical activity, loneliness, sadness, and inner restlessness increased during the pandemic. Access to in-person psychotherapies and visits at the general practitioner (including weight checks) decreased by 37% and 46%, respectively. Videoconference therapy was used by 26% and telephone contacts by 35% of patients. Patients experienced daily routines, day planning and enjoyable activities as the most helpful among the most used coping strategies. DISCUSSION: The COVID-19 pandemic poses great challenges to patients with AN. ED-related thoughts and behaviors may be used as dysfunctional coping mechanisms to regain control over the current circumstances. E-mental health interventions appear to be promising for supporting AN patients during these hard times. Furthermore, interventions addressing symptoms of depression and anxiety, as well as intolerance of uncertainty might help them manage their ED symptoms.

Life satisfaction in persons with mental disorders.

PURPOSE: Life satisfaction refers to a cognitive and global evaluation of the quality of one's life as a whole. The arguably most often used measure of life satisfaction is the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). Persons with mental disorders generally report lower SWLS scores than healthy controls, yet there is a lack of studies that have compared different diagnostic groups, tested measurement invariance of the SWLS across these groups, and examined effects of treatment on life satisfaction. METHODS: Data of 9649 inpatients of seven diagnostic categories were analyzed: depressive episode, recurrent depressive disorder, phobic disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, trauma-related disorders, somatoform disorders, and eating disorders. RESULTS: The one-factor structure of the SWLS was replicated and full measurement invariance was demonstrated across groups. Patients with trauma-related disorders reported the lowest life satisfaction. Life satisfaction significantly increased during treatment across all groups and these changes were moderately related to changes in depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Results support the excellent psychometric properties of the SWLS. They also demonstrate that although persons with mental disorder generally report lower life satisfaction than persons without mental disorders, life satisfaction also varies considerably between different diagnostic groups. Finally, results show that life satisfaction increases during inpatient treatment, although at discharge most patients have rarely reached levels of life satisfaction reported in non-clinical samples.