Diagnosis

As mentioned before, children do not always fit criteria established originally for adults, therefore many of them will actually fall into a broad category called Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS). However, this is not a reason to be complacent. Children with EDNOS can be as ill as those who “meet full criteria”.

Criteria for EDNOS (those who do not meet criteria for anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa, per DSM-IV):

• All criteria for anorexia nervosa, except has regular menses.

• All criteria for anorexia nervosa, except weight still in normal range.

• All criteria for bulimia nervosa, except binges twice a wk or 3 times a mo.

• A patient with normal body weight who regularly engages in inappropriate compensatory behavior after eating small amounts of food (ie, self-induced vomiting after eating 2 cookies).

• A patient who repeatedly chews and spits out large amounts of food without swallowing.

• Binge eating disorder: recurrent binges but does not engage in the inappropriate compensatory behaviors of bulimia nervosa.

source: American Academy of Pediatrics, "Policy Statement: Committee on Adolescence."Pediatrics Vol. 111 No. 1, January 2003