Compliance with a self‐care manual in guided self‐change for bulimia nervosa

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:sec><jats:title>Objective</jats:title><jats:p>To investigate the effect of compliance and its predictors on outcome.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Method</jats:title><jats:p>62 patients with DSM‐III‐R bulimia nervosa (BN) were randomly assigned to a self‐care manual plus eight fortnightly sessions of guided self‐change or 16 sessions of weekly cognitive behavioural therapy.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results</jats:title><jats:p>At the end of treatment, the group of high compliers had not achieved higher abstinence rates than low compliers regarding BN symptoms. At follow‐up on average 43 weeks (SD 26) after the end of therapy, those who had completed more exercises were more likely than low compliers to be abstinent from bingeing and vomiting. Those with a high frequency of vomiting at the beginning of therapy were less likely to use the manual while those with a longer duration of illness and higher levels of restraint were more likely to use the manual.</jats:p></jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Discussion</jats:title><jats:p>Exercises seem to be particularly important. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.</jats:p></jats:sec>