Electrophysiologic abnormalities in bulimia and their implications for pharmacotherapy: A reassessment

Three lines of evidence have suggested that electrophysiologic abnormalities may play a role in bulimia: (1) findings of abnormal EEGs in bulimic patients, (2) evidence that bulimia may respond to anticonvulsant medications, and (3) a possibly elevated frequency of seizures in bulimic patients treated with antidepressant medications. A review of these findings, together with new data from our center and others suggests that electrophysiologic abnormalities do not play a major role in bulimia (although such abnormalities may perhaps be more common in individuals with “atypical” eating disorders). However, the apparently increased frequency of seizures in bulimic patients treated with bupropion remains unexplained. Further research is needed to clarify this finding.