Ten-session cognitive behaviour therapy for eating disorders: Outcomes from a pragmatic pilot study of Australian non-underweight clients

Background Ten-session cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT-T) for eating disorders is designed to reduce barriers to treatment, including cost, therapist expertise, and lengthy wait lists. The current study aimed to replicate the first case series, evaluating the effectiveness of CBT-T in a sample of non-underweight clients, delivered by trainee psychologists under expert supervision. Methods CBT-T was delivered to 26 clients in an outpatient setting. Outcomes included eating disorder cognitions and behaviours, quality of life, and general psychopathology. Analyses adopted a completer and intention-to-treat approach to data analysis, using multi-level modelling. Results Significant improvements were found for the majority of outcomes from baseline to post-treatment and at one- and three-month follow-up. Effect sizes at post-treatment and follow-up from baseline were typically medium to large. Conclusion Results support the effectiveness of CBT-T as a treatment for non-underweight eating disorder clients. Results were also comparable to longer versions of CBT for eating disorders and to outcomes delivered by experienced therapists. Longer follow-ups and the use of randomised controlled trial designs are required to confirm the efficacy of CBT-T.