
==== Front
medRxiv
MEDRXIV
medRxiv
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

10.1101/2024.09.05.24313142
preprint
2
Article
Descriptives and genetic correlates of eating disorder diagnostic transitions and presumed remission in the Danish registry
Abdulkadir Mohamed http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6080-257X

Larsen Janne Tidselbak http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0385-1017

Clausen Loa http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4559-8347

Hübel Christopher http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1267-8287

Albiñana Clara http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3166-4120

Thornton Laura M. http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9384-7988

Vilhjálmsson Bjarni J. http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2277-9249

Bulik Cynthia M. http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7772-3264

Yilmaz Zeynep http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8145-1596

Petersen Liselotte Vogdrup http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0479-5379

08 9 2024
2024.09.05.24313142https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, which allows reusers to copy and distribute the material in any medium or format in unadapted form only, for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.
http://medrxiv.org/lookup/doi/10.1101/2024.09.05.24313142
nihpp-2024.09.05.24313142.pdf
Abstract

Objective

Eating disorders (EDs) are serious psychiatric disorders with an estimated 3.3 million healthy life-years lost worldwide yearly. Understanding the course of illness, diagnostic transitions and remission, and their associated genetic correlates could inform both ED etiology and treatment. The authors investigated occurrences of ED transitions and presumed remission and their genetic correlates as captured by polygenic scores (PGSs) in a large Danish register-based cohort.

Methods

The sample compromised of 10,565 individuals with a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), or eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS) with at least two registered hospital contacts between 1995 and 2018. Based on medical records, occurrence of diagnostic transitions and periods of presumed remission were identified. Associations between 422 PGS and diagnostic transitions and presumed remission were evaluated using Cox proportional hazard models.

Results

A minority of ED cases (14.1%-23.1%) experienced a diagnostic transition. Presumed remission ranged between 86.9%-89.8%. Higher (one SD increase) PGS for major depressive disorder and multisite chronic pain were positively associated with transitioning from AN to either BN or EDNOS. Higher PGS on a measure of body fat percentage and financial difficulties were positively associated with presumed remission from AN. Higher PGS for mood swings was positively associated with presumed remission from EDNOS whereas higher PGS for health rating showed the opposite.

Conclusions

The authors found that most ED patients did not experience diagnostic transitions but were more likely to experience a period of presumed remission. Both diagnostic transitions and presumed remission have significant polygenic component.
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pmc
