OBJECTIVE:

The authors sought predictors of treatment utilization among women with eating disorders.

METHOD:

Women diagnosed with either anorexia or bulimia nervosa (N=246) completed prospective evaluations of eating disorder status, comorbid disorders, global assessment of functioning, and treatment utilization.

RESULTS:

Women with anorexia nervosa received significantly more inpatient treatment than did women with bulimia nervosa. Predictors of treatment utilization included lower global assessment of functioning scores and presence of personality disorders.

CONCLUSIONS:

Women with more severe pathology have higher treatment utilization rates. This pattern may explain the seeming lack of treatment efficacy for eating disorders outside of randomized controlled studies.