Anorexia nervosa, binge eating/purging type, unspecified

This code represents a severe eating disorder characterized by a persistent restriction of energy intake leading to significantly low body weight, an intense fear of gaining weight, and a disturbed perception of body shape or weight. Patients with this subtype engage in recurrent episodes of binge eating followed by compensatory behaviors such as self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or enemas, or excessive exercise, where the specific type of compensatory behavior is not documented.

Use this code when documentation clearly indicates a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa with a history of binge eating and purging behaviors, but the specific purging method (e.g., vomiting vs. laxative abuse) is not specified. This code is appropriate when the provider has not documented enough detail to assign a more specific purging type.

• Ensure documentation explicitly states "anorexia nervosa" and "binge eating/purging type" without further specification of the purging method.
• Distinguish carefully from bulimia nervosa, which involves recurrent binge eating and compensatory behaviors without the presence of significantly low body weight.
• Query the provider for more specific documentation regarding the purging method if possible, to allow for a more precise code assignment (e.g., F50.021 for vomiting, F50.022 for laxative use).