OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of the
appetite suppressant d-fenfluramine in the treatment of binge eating
disorder. METHOD: The authors conducted an 8-week double-blind, placebo-
controlled clinical trial of the drug with 28 severely obese female
patients meeting full criteria for binge eating disorder. The primary
outcome measure was number of binges per week, as recorded in binge diaries
and reviewed weekly with the principal investigators. RESULTS: Random
effects linear regression analysis showed that the rate of binge eating in
the d-fenfluramine group fell three times more rapidly than that in the
placebo group, a result that was both clinically and statistically
significant. At 4-month follow-up the binge frequency of the d-fenfluramine
group had increased to pretreatment levels and no longer differed from that
of the placebo group. CONCLUSIONS: d- Fenfluramine reduced the frequency of
binge eating by obese women with binge eating disorder.Abstract Teaser