[Eating disorders; 25 years of research and treatment].

As a result of the publication of DSM-III(-R) bulimia nervosa was recognised as a separate eating disorder, distinct from anorexia nervosa. Eating disorders occur mainly in young females. The incidence of anorexia nervosa in Dutch females aged 15 to 19 doubled between the 1980s and the 1990s. Over the past 25 years there have been many improvements in the treatment of patients with eating disorders, but only a very few of them utilise the health care facilities that are now available.