ABSTRACT
Every experienced clinician in the field of eating disorders has encountered a multisymptomatic and challenging patient who manifests longstanding symptoms related to personality pathology. However, the genuine prevalence of Axis II disorders among those with eating disorders remains somewhat elusive. This is due, in part, to small sample sizes in empirical studies, the intensifying effects of Axis I pathology (i.e., the eating disorder) on Axis II symptoms, the difficulties inherent in personality disorder diagnosis, and the effects of biased sampling (e.g., using tertiary-care samples with correspondingly higher levels of comorbid individuals).
