[Mortality and causes of death in patients with eating disorders in Denmark, 1970-1993]

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of this study was to describe standardised mortality rates and causes of death in patients with eating disorders, who were admitted to Danish psychiatric and somatic hospitals during the period, 1970 to 1993.

Methods: By means of record-linkage, the study covered all patients admitted for and diagnosed as suffering from an eating disorder, according to the ICD-8 classification system, at any Danish psychiatric (since 1970) or somatic department (since 1977) during the period 1970-1993. The study comprised 2763 patients 237 of whom were males. The maximum follow-up time was 23 years and the mean follow-up time 10.3 years.

Results: The crude mortality at follow-up was 8.4%. A significant excessive mortality was demonstrated, as the standardised mortality ratio (SMR) of the total patient population was 6.69 (CI 5.68-7.83) and the highest rate ratio (RR) of 14.92 (CI 9.66-22.03) related to women aged 25-29.

Conclusion: With its 2763 patients, this is the largest study of a population with eating disorders ever published. The study documents a significant excessive mortality among such patients in all age groups.