Eating disorder psychopathology as a marker of psychosocial distress and suicide risk in female and male adolescent psychiatric inpatients

Abstract

Objective-To examine psychosocial correlates of specific aspects of eating disorder (ED) psychopathology (i.e., dietary restriction, body dissatisfaction, binge eating, and self-induced vomiting) in psychiatrically-hospitalized adolescent girls and boys.Method-Four hundred and ninety-two psychiatric inpatients (286 girls and 206 boys), aged 12 to 19 years, completed self-report measures of psychosocial and behavioral functioning including measures of suicide risk and ED psychopathology. Associations between ED psychopathology and psychosocial functioning were examined separately by sex and after controlling for depressive/ negative affect using Beck Depression Inventory scores.Results-Among boys and girls, after controlling for depressive/negative affect, ED psychopathology was significantly associated with anxiety, low self-esteem, and current distress regarding childhood abuse. Among girls, after controlling for depressive/negative affect, ED psychopathology was significantly related to hopelessness and suicidality. Among boys, after controlling for depressive/negative affect, ED psychopathology was positively related to selfreported history of sexual abuse and various externalizing problems (drug abuse, violence, and impulsivity).Conclusion-In psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents, ED psychopathology may be an important marker of broad psychosocial distress and behavioral problems among girls and boys although the nature of the specific associations differs by sex.Adolescence represents a period of risk for the development of eating disorders (ED) and studies with community-based and clinically-referred adolescents suggest that ED psychopathology is associated with significant psychosocial distress and problems including internalizing and externalizing symptoms, abuse, and suicidality (e.g., 1,2,3,4). Despite the severity of these associated psychosocial problems, ED psychopathology has received less attention in psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents (5). Perhaps of particular importance for clinicians working with adolescent psychiatric inpatient populations is the growing body of research documenting an association between ED psychopathology and suicidality across diverse clinical and community samples. Specifically, EDs (particularly anorexia nervosa) are Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.Conflict of Interest: Drs. Zaitsoff and Grilo report no competing or conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise, for this work. associated with the high rates of completed suicide and two risk factors for suicide, suicidal ideation and a history of att...

Mediating Influences of Negative Affect and Risk Perception on the Relationship Between Sensation Seeking and Adolescent Cigarette Smoking

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Is childhood trauma associated with lifetime suicide attempts in women with bulimia nervosa?

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Alexithymia and Suicide Ideation in a Sample of Patients with Binge Eating Disorder

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