Primary affective disorder in relatives of patients with anorexia nervosa.

The authors examined the incidence of primary affective disorder (PAD) in relatives of 25 patients with anorexia nervosa and of 25 normal control subjects. Among the relatives of patients with anorexia nervosa, 22% (N = 43) had histories of PAD, while only 10% (N = 17) of the relatives of controls had such histories. Among the PAD relatives of anorectic probands, 34 had histories of unipolar depression and 9 of bipolar affective disorder. These findings provide further evidence of a possible relationship between anorexia nervosa and affective illness.