Diagnosed Bulimia Nervosa

A medical or mental health professional who is experienced in recognizing the signs and symptoms of eating disorders can usually make a diagnosis after interviewing a patient and performing a physical examination.

Often, a dentist, pediatrician, therapist, or family physician—the doctors who see the patient most often—are the first healthcare professionals with the opportunity to recognize the signs and symptoms of bulimia nervosa.

The patient may not willingly describe symptoms and may be unwilling to acknowledge the observations made by a dentist or family doctor.

The key to making a diagnosis is that the dentist or physician seeing the patient has to be aware of the signs and symptoms of bulimia nervosa so they recognize a possible case when they see it. They should then refer to the DSM to see if the signs and symptoms they observed fit the criteria.

Since first being described in 1979, the criteria used to make an "official" diagnosis of bulimia nervosa have changed several times. These changes reflect ongoing debate among medical and psychological professionals over the criteria that define the disorder.

Early definitions focused on binge eating and the purging/non-purging activity, "irresistible urges to overeat," and a "morbid fear of becoming fat."

Later definitions defined binge eating and purging/non-purging more specifically in terms of numbers of episodes within a timeframe, and added some psychiatric components. These criteria are also used to define remission and recovery from the disorder.

According to the latest edition of the DSM, the diagnostic criteria that must be met before a clinician applies a diagnosis of bulimia nervosa to a patient require that the person must have binged and engaged in purging or non-purging compensatory behavior at least twice weekly for three months, and evaluate (i.e., judge) self according to body size and shape.