Establishing guidelines for pharmacotherapy trials in bulimia nervosa and anorexia nervosa.

OBJECTIVE

This paper addresses the lack of a standard protocol for pharmacotherapy trials for patients with bulimia nervosa (BN) and anorexia nervosa (AN).

METHOD: Twenty-two surveys were sent to established researchers in the field of eating disorders to elicit their opinions regarding medication trials, including baseline laboratory tests, the optimal length/frequency of medication management sessions, and the information that should or should not be included in these sessions.

RESULTS

Sixteen of 22 researchers completed and returned the survey. Their answers are the basis of the data presented.

DISCUSSION: We propose a battery of screening laboratory tests for both conditions. We suggest 30-45-min initial medication management sessions in both AN and BN trials with 15-min follow-ups to be held weekly for AN subjects, and weekly for 2 weeks, then biweekly for 2 weeks, then monthly, for BN subjects. We also recommend that published trials should include explicit details of medication management.