ReviewJournal of eating disorders2025
The efficacy of compassion focused therapy in eating disorders: a systematic review of the literature.
Review in Journal of eating disorders, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Guilt Facets and Eating Disorder Psychopathology: An Exploratory Cross-Sectional Study Using the Moral Orientation Guilt Scale.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCompassion Focused Therapy (CFT) is an evolution-informed intervention designed to address high levels of shame and self-criticism, which are common in eating disorders (EDs). Given the mixed findings of current ED treatments and the absence of prior systematic reviews on CFT in this context, this review aimed to critically evaluate its clinical outcomes.
methodA systematic search of databases was conducted, including PsychINFO, MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and Scopus. Grey literature databases were searched including CORE, PsyArVix Preprints, and BASE. The last search was conducted in February 2025. Studies were included where a quantitative outcome was reported following CFT in participants with any ED diagnosis, across the lifespan. A narrative approach was employed to synthesize the results and the Downs and Black (1998) checklist was used to assess the quality of included studies.
resultsTwenty-three studies (8 randomized controlled trials, 2 uncontrolled trials, and 13 quasi-experimental) were included. Eighteen papers were English language, and most participants were adult females. Overall, CFT led to a reduction in ED core psychopathology, including across the EDE-Q subscales, as well as improvements in self-compassion and body image, and a decrease in shame. Evidence for change to body mass index was mixed. Results from trials varied in how effective this treatment was relative to other treatment modalities.
conclusionThere is preliminary evidence to support CFT as an effective treatment for adults with a range of ED diagnoses. However, the limited number of comparisons to evidence-based interventions and small sample sizes means there is limited evidence that CFT is as effective as current first-line treatments. Future research may benefit from larger sample sizes; direct comparisons of CFT to evidence-based interventions; standardizing outcomes; and exploring for whom CFT is most effective.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.