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Clustering of eating disorder symptoms in a general population female twin sample: a latent class analysis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 May 2007

ALEXIS E. DUNCAN ,
KATHLEEN KEENAN BUCHOLZ ,
ROSALIND J. NEUMAN ,
ARPANA AGRAWAL ,
PAMELA A. F. MADDEN  and
ANDREW C. HEATH
ALEXIS E. DUNCAN*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
KATHLEEN KEENAN BUCHOLZ
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
ROSALIND J. NEUMAN
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
ARPANA AGRAWAL
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
PAMELA A. F. MADDEN
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
ANDREW C. HEATH
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO, USA
*
*Address for correspondence: Alexis Duncan, Ph.D., Washington University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, 660 S. Euclid, Box 8134, St Louis, MO 63110, USA. (Email: duncana@psychiatry.wustl.edu)
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Abstract

Background

Previous studies have reported that the current DSM-IV eating disorder (ED) criteria do not adequately describe ED symptomatology. The objective of the current study was to examine the clustering of ED symptoms in a general population sample using latent class analysis (LCA).

Method

ED symptoms from 3723 female young adult twins (mean age 22) were analyzed using LCA, and resulting classes were compared on external validators reflecting ED and other co-morbid psychiatric diagnoses, substance use disorders (SUDs), and suicidality.

Results

The optimal solution consisted of five latent classes characterized as: (1) Unaffected; (2) Low Weight Gain; (3) Weight Concerned; (4) Dieters; and (5) ED. Members of the ED class had significantly higher prevalence of co-morbid psychiatric disorders, SUDs, and suicidality than the Unaffected and Low Weight Gain classes, and elevated rates of suicidality and major depression compared to the Weight Concerned and Dieter classes, which differed from each other primarily in terms of current body mass index (BMI). Dieter class members were more likely to be overweight and obese and less likely to be underweight than Weight Concerned class members. The majority of women with an ED diagnosis were assigned to the ED class, and few differences were found between ED class members with and without an ED diagnosis.

Conclusions

The results add to the evidence that many women with significant ED psychopathology are not being identified by the DSM-IV ED categories.

Type
Original Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 37 , Issue 8 , August 2007 , pp. 1097 - 1107
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2007

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