The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on referral numbers, diagnostic mix, and symptom severity in Eating Disorder Early Intervention Services in England.

Our research suggests that early intervention eating disorder services across England faced significant increases in patient referrals and presentations of anorexia nervosa over the COVID-19 pandemic. This increase in referrals is not due to a rise in milder eating disorder cases, as baseline symptom severity remained stable across the pandemic. Investment in early intervention for eating disorders must therefore match increased referral trends.