ABSTRACT Objective This umbrella review and meta‐analysis synthesized recent evidence on the efficacy of psychotherapy for adults with non‐underweight eating disorders (EDs). Method PsycINFO, Scopus, PubMed, and ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global were searched for meta‐analyses of randomized controlled trials comparing psychotherapy to treatment as usual (TAU) or control conditions in non‐underweight adults with EDs (published January 2020–September 2025). Standardized mean differences (SMDs) for ED psychopathology and objective binge episode (OBE) frequency were pooled using second‐order random‐effects models. Subgroup analyses examined specific diagnoses and delivery format. Quality was assessed with the A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Review (AMSTAR 2). Data were synthesized with Covidence and analyzed using R. Results Ten meta‐analyses (71 RCTs) were included. Most participants were female, White, and diagnosed with bulimia nervosa or binge eating disorder. Psychotherapy yielded significant medium‐to‐large improvements in ED psychopathology (SMD = 0.74, 95% CI: 0.67–0.82, Q p = 0.79, I 2 = 0.0% 95% CI: 0.0%– 56.6%) and OBE frequency (SMD = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.52–0.77, Q p = 0.40, I 2 = 4.5% 95% CI: 0.0%– 66.4%) relative to TAU/control, with low heterogeneity. Effects were comparable across sub‐group analyses. Nine of 10 meta‐analyses were rated as critically low regarding confidence in results, as per the AMSTAR 2. Discussion Psychotherapy is efficacious for non‐underweight adults with eating disorders, including when delivered using program‐led focused interventions. The use of the AMSTAR‐2 tool is encouraged to guide high‐quality, transparent reporting of future meta‐analyses in our field.
Pellizzer et al. (Thu,) studied this question.
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