Predictive validity of bulimia nervosa as a diagnostic category

Objective: The authors sought to investigate the predictive validity of bul imia nervosa as a diagnostic category. Method: More than 10 years after the y appeared as patients with bulimia nervosa, 177 women (participation rate= 79.7%) completed follow-up assessments, Results: Among the women with a cur rent eating pathology, most engaged in recurrent binge eating and purging. Anorexia nervosa and binge eating disorder were relatively uncommon. Eating disorder outcome was significantly related to the presence of mood, substa nce use, and impulse control disorders but not to the presence of anxiety d isorders, Conclusions: These results support the validity of bulimia nervos a as a diagnostic category that is distinct from anorexia nervosa, Furtherm ore, these results suggest that bulimic symptoms are associated with disord ers involving distress and disinhibition.