Binge eating disorder onset by unusual parasitic intestinal disease: A case-report

We report a case of binge eating disorder (BED) in a 19-year-old Spanish wo man, whose onset followed a nowadays uncommon parasitic intestinal disease (Taenia solium by cysticercosis). The patient exhibited bizarre and frequen t hyperphagia episodes and extreme loss of weight, common symptoms of this condition. The patient continued to have frequent binge episodes and inappr opriate eating patterns, gaining weight consequently over a normal range, d espite successful treatment of the condition. No purging behavior was detec ted. A classical conditioning behavioral model, was useful for the understa nding and formulation of this case. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first reported case where a parasitic infestation triggered the onset of BE D. (C) 2001 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.