How do clinicians in the field conceptualise muscle dysmorphia? / Stuart B. Murray, Stephen Touyz. - (Advances in Eating Disorders 1 (2013) 3 (7 June); p. 207-212)
- DOI: 10.1080/21662630.2013.794517
Abstract
Objective:
Muscle dysmorphia is a relatively recently identified psychiatric condition, whose precise nosological nature remains unclear. This study is aimed at investigating the diagnostic conceptualisation of muscle dysmorphia amongst a group of clinical practitioners.
Method: A clinical vignette, which ambiguously depicted the features of muscle dysmorphia in either male or female cases, was presented to a group of 100 clinical practitioners, who provided preliminary diagnoses based on the symptoms depicted.
Results: The majority of clinicians conceptualised this cluster of symptoms as an eating disorder phenotype, as opposed to variants of either body dysmorphic disorder or obsessive compulsive disorder.
Conclusions: These findings provide some support for the notion that muscle dysmorphia may best be conceptualised as an eating disorder phenotype. The findings are discussed in light of their clinical implications.
