Abstract
This study aimed to assess and develop consensus on the assessment of disordered eating in pregnancy. A three-round modified Delphi approach was used. Participants were international clinicians and researchers (N = 26) with extensive knowledge on and/or clinical experience with eating disorders, particularly in relation to pregnancy and/or women’s health. Clear consensus among the panel, defined as 75% agreement, was reached regarding the assessment of disordered eating in pregnancy, in addition to potential assessment methods. Antenatal assessment of disordered eating was perceived to be crucial and ideally occur in a routine manner. Despite agreement that various assessment methods would be relevant in assessing disordered eating in pregnancy, psychometrically sound brief screening instruments were perceived to be most feasible for practitioners and women accessing antenatal care; however, these instruments must be pregnancy-specific and delivered in an authentic and caring manner to be beneficial.
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Acknowledgements
The authors wish to express their sincerest gratitude to all the panel members who generously contributed their time and expertise to this study. The authors gratefully acknowledge the following panel members, who have consented to be recognised for their contributions: Ms. Jacqueline Byrne, Ms. Amanda Davis, Dr. Justine Ebenreuter, Dr. Melissa Freizinger, Dr. Christine Furber, Dr. Anthea Fursland, Ms. Kelly Gall, Dr. Marcia Herrin, Professor Angelica Lindén Hirschberg, Associate Professor Mimi Israël, Emeritus Professor Michael Levine, Ms. Shelly Read, Associate Professor Elizabeth Rieger, Professor Helen Skouteris, Dr. Stephanie Tierney, Ms. Natalie Watson, Associate Professor Jennifer Wildes and Associate Professor Stephanie Zerwas.
Funding
This research was supported by a Research Training Program Scholarship funded by the Australian Government.
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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.
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Bannatyne, A.J., Hughes, R., Stapleton, P. et al. Consensus on the assessment of disordered eating in pregnancy: an international Delphi study. Arch Womens Ment Health 21, 383–390 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-017-0806-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-017-0806-x