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  • Meta-Analysis of the Effica...
    Hilbert, Anja; Petroff, David; Herpertz, Stephan; Pietrowsky, Reinhard; Tuschen-Caffier, Brunna; Vocks, Silja; Schmidt, Ricarda

    Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 01/2019, Volume: 87, Issue: 1
    Journal Article

    Objective: To provide a comprehensive meta-analysis on the efficacy of psychological and medical treatments for binge-eating disorder (BED), including those targeting weight loss. Method: Through a systematic search before March 2018, 81 published and unpublished randomized-controlled trials (RCTs), totaling 7,515 individuals with BED (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition DSM-IV and Fifth Edition DSM-5), were retrieved and analyzed using random-effect modeling. Results: In RCTs with inactive control groups, psychotherapy, mostly consisting of cognitive-behavioral therapy, showed large-size effects for the reduction of binge-eating episodes and abstinence from binge eating, followed by structured self-help treatment with medium-to-large effects when compared with wait-list. Pharmacotherapy and pharmacological weight loss treatment mostly outperformed pill placebo conditions with small effects on binge-eating outcome. These results were confirmed for the most common treatments of cognitive-behavioral therapy, self-help treatment based on cognitive-behavioral therapy, and lisdexamfetamine. In RCTs with active control groups, there was limited evidence for the superiority of one treatment category or treatment. In a few studies, psychotherapy outperformed behavioral weight loss treatment in short- and long-term binge-eating outcome and led to lower longer-term abstinence than self-help treatment, while combined treatment revealed no additive effect on binge-eating outcome over time. Overall study quality was heterogeneous and the quality of evidence for binge-eating outcome was generally very low. Conclusions: This comprehensive meta-analysis demonstrated the efficacy of psychotherapy, structured self-help treatment, and pharmacotherapy for patients with BED. More high quality research on treatments for BED is warranted, with a focus on long-term maintenance of therapeutic gains, comparative efficacy, mechanisms through which treatments work, and complex models of care. What is the public health significance of this article? This comprehensive meta-analysis on psychological and medical treatments for binge-eating disorder demonstrates the efficacy of psychotherapy, structured self-help treatment, and pharmacotherapy. Psychotherapy may be prioritized over behavioral weight loss treatment, self-help treatment, and combined treatment. These results can be used as guidance in translating evidence-based treatments into clinical practice.