Depression in anorexia nervosa at follow-up.

This study set out to investigate the correlation between depressive symptomatology and the eating disorder psychopathology at a 3-year follow-up after discharge of 34 adolescent anorexia nervosa patients. Three standardized rating instruments were employed to assess depression and two defined outcome criteria were used to assess the eating disorder. Correlation analysis revealed that there was a consistent and significant association between the severity of eating disorder symptoms and the degree of depression at follow-up. According to the subscales of the average outcome score of Morgan and Russell (Psychological Medicine 5:355-371, 1975), depression was related more to social maladaptation than to the specific eating disorder psychopathology.