BPD and certain forms of disordered eating are known to be associated with poor impulse control. Our aim is to identify
the clinical and psychometric characteristics of patients with BPD and disordered eating, with particular emphasis on
impulsivity.
Methods; A convenience sample of patients with DSM-IV BPD was enrolled from five Italian outpatient mental health
services. The BPD sample was divided into two groups according to the presence of clinically significant disordered
eating and compared with a third group of outpatients with only disordered eating.
Results; In the BPD sample, 52% had disordered eating. Patients with BPD+disordered eating had more lifetime suicide
attempts (p=0.046) and hospitalizations (p=0.038) and showed higher impulsivity on the Barratt-Impulsiveness-Scale
(p=0.026) specifically in the domain of attentional impulsivity (p<0.001), as well as greater depressive symptoms on the
Beck-Depression-Inventory (p=0.006). A correlation was found between attentional impulsivity and all of the Eating-
Disorder-Examination-Questionnaire subscales apart from the restriction one.
Conclusions; Disordered eating is common among individuals with BPD and these patients represent a significantly
more impulsive subgroup with a higher rate of suicidality, and therefore a challenge for clinicians. Attentional impulsivity
could represent a novel treatment target for this group of individuals.
