Eruption of urticaria and angioedema induced by binging and purging in an anorexia nervosa patient.

BACKGROUND

Anorexia nervosa is a perplexing psycho-biological disorder with a systemic nature, which can present in almost every organ and system of the body. Among the different presentations of starvation, several immunological and dermatological manifestations have been documented. To the best of our knowledge the occurrence of urticaria and angioedema in patients with binge or purge behaviors has yet to be documented.

CASE PRESENTATION: We present a 16-year-old female patient diagnosed with anorexia nervosa binge/purge type, who presented with urticaria and angioedema shortly after binge/purge episodes that subsided when these behaviors ceased. Other possible causes for the urticaria were ruled out.

DISCUSSION: This finding may represent a form of inducible urticaria, exacerbated in low-weight patients by the occurrence of binge/purge behaviors. We wish to report this observation in an attempt to widen the scope of the physical signs that may accompany eating disorders and bring this specific phenomenon into awareness. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2016; 49:822-825).