Validation of the SCOFF questionnaire for screening of eating disorders in university women.

Abstract

Background. The prevalence of eating disorders has been steadily increasing in recent years. This has led to a growing sense that instruments are necessary for early detection in high risk populations.
Objective. Herein the SCOFF (sick, control, one, fat, food) questionnaire was examined for its internal consistency, reliability, and criterion validity in screening eating disorders among university women.
Materials And Methods. A sample of 385 students was selected at random from six schools in the Universidad Autonóma de Bucaramanga, Colombia, and were evaluated independently with the SCOFF questionnaire and a CIDI (Composite International Diagnostic Interview).
Results. A total of 149 (38.7%) students were positive for eating disorder syndromes according to the SCOFF questionnaire, whereas 82 (21.2%) students met eating disorder using the CIDI. SCOFF questionnaire sensitivity was 78.4% (95%CI 64-88%), specificity 75.8% (95%CI 69-82%), ROC curve area 0.823 (95%CI 0.76-0.89), Cronbach's alpha 0.480, Cohen's kappa 0.433 (95%CI 0.32-0.55), and test-retest concordance 91.6% (95%CI 86-96).
Conclusion. These data indicate the SCOFF questionnaire to be a good scale in screening for eating disorders among university women. Its added advantages are that the test is simple and brief.