The Long-Term Efficacy of Three Psychotherapies for Anorexia Nervosa: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

Objective: To evaluate the long-term efficacy of three psychotherapies for anorexia nervosa. Method: Participants were women with broadly defined anorexia nervosa who had participated in a RCT comparing specialized psychotherapies (cognitive behavior therapy, CBT, and interpersonal psychotherapy, IPT) with a control condition (specialist supportive clinical management, SSCM), and attended long-term follow-up assessment (mean 6.7 years +/- 1.2). Results: Forty three of the original sample of 56 women participated in long-term follow-up assessment (77%). No significant differences were found on any pre-selected primary, secondary or tertiary outcome measures among the three psychotherapies at long-term follow-up assessment. Significantly different patterns of recovery were identified for the psychotherapies across time on the primary global outcome measure. Although SSCM was associated with a more rapid response than IPT, by follow-up all three treatments were indistinguishable. Discussion: Potential implications for the timing of interventions to improve treatment response in anorexia nervosa are critically examined. (C) 2010 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.