Are there gender differences in core symptoms, temperament, and short-term prospective outcome in anorexia nervosa?

Abstract

Although gender has little effect on the clinical features of anorexia nervosa, the illness runs a more protracted early course in females. Possible mechanisms underlying greater persistence of morbidity in females include sexual dimorphisms in brain neurotransmission, gender differences in attitudes regarding ideal body weight, and anxiety-related personality phenotypes associated with anorexia nervosa.