Cognitive‐behavioral treatment of adult rumination behavior in the setting of disordered eating: A single case experimental design

The integration of feeding and eating disorders into a single DSM-5 chapter introduces an opportunity to explore common mechanisms and transdiagnostic treatment approaches. In contrast to a robust literature on the evidence-based treatment of eating disorders, very few data guide the treatment of rumination disorder (RD). In a single case experimental design, we describe the treatment of a 27-year-old woman who presented to an eating-disorder clinic with a 15-year history of untreated rumination and intermittent binge eating. According to time series analysis, she reduced rumination frequency at trend-level during the initial baseline phase (self-monitoring only), and exhibited significant reductions during the active intervention phase (self-monitoring + cognitive-behavioral techniques including diaphragmatic breathing and behavioral experimentation). She maintained these gains at 23 weeks post-intervention. Although more rigorous systematic investigation is needed, these data suggest that selected cognitive and behavioral techniques already familiar to eating-disorder clinicians may have heuristic value for RD treatment.