31st January 2024

Introduction

Eating disorders, like many psychiatric disorders, are hard to define and are categorised based on subjective (i.e., patient-reported) symptoms, which vary around the world. What makes eating disorders different from other psychiatric disorders is the impact on physical health, and this is often included in diagnostic manuals. This secion will focus on the ICD-11, as the adopted standard by the World Health Organisation since January 2022, which is very similar to the previous and more familiar ICD-10. Eating disorders can broadly be split into three key conditions: Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and Avoidant-Restrictive Food Intake Disorder. Also under this category are a series of miscellaneous presentations of Pica, Rumination-Regurgitation Disorder and “feeding or eating disorders not otherwise specified.” For the psychiatrist, differentiating these disorders is important as it impacts upon the psychological treatment. For the physician, what is key to identifying a disordered relationship with food and eating is that they must impact on the patient’s physical health, which could be syndromes related to nutritional deficiencies, dehydration or electrolyte imbalances.