Objective Anorexia nervosa is a disorder of high morbidity and significant mortality. The aim of the present review was to evaluate the evidence from randomized controlled trials for the efficacy of outpatient psychotherapies used in the treatment of older adolescents ( aged ＞16 years) and adults with anorexia nervosa. Methods The search strat egy comprised database searches of Medline, EXTRAMED, EMBASE, PSYCLIT, Current Contents, Cochrane Con trolled Trials Register and the Depression and Anxiety Neurosis Cochrane Group ( CCDAN), the search date was Novem ber 2002. A hand-search of The International Journal of Eating Disorders from its first issue up to March 2003, and the ref erence lists of all papers selected. Personal letters were sent to identified leading researchers published in the area, requesting information on trials that are unpublished. All randomized controlled trials of adult individual outpatient therapy for anorexia nervosa, as defined by the DSM-IV or similar international criterion, were included. Quality ratings were made according to the CCDAN criteria. A range of outcome variables were selected, including physical state, severity of eating disorder attitudes and behefs, interpersonal function, and general psychiatric symptom severity. Continuous outcome data comparisons were planned with the standardized mean difference statistic, and binary outcome comparisons planned with the relative risk statistic. Results Six small trials only, two of which included children or adolescents, were identified from the search and aggregation of data was not possible. Bias was possible due to lack of blinding of outcome assessments. The results in two trials suggested that "treatment as usual" or similar may be less efficacious than a specific psychotherapy. No specific treatment was consistently superior to any other specific approach. Dietary advice as a control arm had a 100% non-completion rate in one trial. Conclusions No specific approach can be recommended from this review. It is unclear why "treatment as usual" performed so poorly, or why dietary advice alone appeared so unacceptable. There is an urgent need for large well-designed trials in this area.