Evaluation of family treatment models for eating disorders

Purpose of review Interest in the effectiveness of family interventions for eating disorders has increased over the past 5 years. This review considers the theoretical justification and current evidence base for the use of family treatments for eating disorders in children and adolescents. Recent findings Family-based treatment is the best studied treatment. It has the strongest evidence base for effectiveness for anorexia nervosa in adolescents. Family-based treatment can be delivered in several formats and doses, and preliminary data suggest it can be disseminated by training and manuals. There is a more limited evidence base demonstrating the usefulness of family interventions for bulimia nervosa in adolescents. Summary The implications of the findings of this review are that family interventions are the current first-line treatment for adolescent anorexia nervosa and promising for adolescent bulimia nervosa. Pilot studies suggest that family interventions can be disseminated in diverse clinical settings.