Obsessive-compulsive Dimensions Research Articles

Severity and Changes in OCD Dimensions during COVID-19: A Two-Year Longitudinal Study.

The COVID-19 pandemic appears to be associated with a worsening of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in both young people and adults with OCD and it is necessary to analyze the variables involved in this worsening over time. The main aim of this study was to examine long-term changes in total severity and obsessive-compulsive dimensions in obsessive-compulsive patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total 250 OCD patients were selected from various associations, clinical centers and hospitals. We discarded 75 as they did not meet the inclusion criteria. A total of 175 obsessive-compulsive participants aged between 16 and 58 years old (M = 33.33, SD = 9.42) were evaluated in obsessive-compulsive symptom severity and dimensions OCD assessed using the Y-BOCS and D-YBOCS scales in T1 (April-June 2020) and in T2 (March-April 2022). The evaluation was carried out through an online survey and face-to-face with a professional clinician at both time points. Intragroup differences in severity were observed, reaching higher scores for patients with contamination, somatic, aggressive and religious. Some patients changed their main dimension, increasing the percentage of patients with contamination and somatic obsessions. COVID-19 was associated with both changes in severity and also affected some dimensions more than others, particularly those related to the virus itself (contamination and somatic).

Inteligencia emocional percibida e ira en adolescentes con respuestas obsesivo-compulsivas

Poor perception, understanding and regulation of emotions often play a key role in the development and maintenance of psychopathological disorders. The aim of this study was to analyze differences in attention, compression, regulation of emotion and anger, taking into account some variables that may influence results (age, anxiety and depression). Participants were 315 adolescents (213 boys and 102 girls) aged between 12 and 18 years old (M= 14.92, SD= 1.98), high (≥ 90th percentile) and low (< percentile 21) ratings in obsessive-compulsive dimension in The Symptom Check List (SCL-90-R; Derogatis, 1975). Statistically significant differences between groups were observed in emotions and anger variables except internal expression of anger and physical expression of anger. Age, anxiety and depression influenced some variables. These findings are relevant for treatment.

Impact of brain-derived neurotrophic factor Val66Met polymorphism and response to escitalopram or paroxetine in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a severe psychiatric disorder characterized by its heterogeneous nature and by different dimensions of obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms. Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs) are used to treat OCD, but up to 40% to 60% of patients do not show a significant improvement with these medications. In this study, we aimed to test the impact of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) Val66Met polymorphism on the efficacy of antidepressants in OCD overall, and in relation to the different OC dimensions. In a 6-month prospective treatment study, 69 Caucasian OCD patients were treated with escitalopram for 24weeks or with escitalopram for 12weeks followed by paroxetine for an additional 12-week period. Patients were genotyped and assessed for treatment response. The main clinical outcomes were improvement of the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale score and in different OC symptom dimension scores. The Val/Val group comprised 43 (62%) patients, the Val/Met and Met/Met group comprised 26 (38%) patients. Forty-two patients were classified as responders at 12weeks and 38 at 24weeks; no significant association was found between BDNF Val66Met and SRIs response at 12 and 24weeks. In analyses of the different OC symptom dimensions, the Met allele was associated with a slightly reduced score in the aggressive/checking dimension at 6months (P=.048). Our findings do not support the usefulness of BDNF Val66Met genotyping to predict overall response to treatment with SRIs in OCD; they did however suggest a better outcome at 6months for the aggressive/checking symptom dimension for patients carrying the Met allele.

27.4 The Relationship of Anxiety Constructs to Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Dimensions

27.4 The Relationship of Anxiety Constructs to Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Dimensions

Bidirectional comorbidity between bipolarand obsessive-compulsive disorders: symptoms frequency, treatment challenges and underexplored areas

The high comorbidity of bipolar- (BD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a challenge in the psychiatric field. This topic has been scarcely investigated in Latin America, and we could not find published studies conducted in Venezuela. Given the common difficulty to establish a categorical diagnosis in comorbid conditions, we assessed the frequency of current OC symptoms (OCS) in subjects with primary BD, and of BD symptoms (BDS) insubjects with primary OCD. We administered the Yale-Brown Obsessive-CompulsiveScale (Y-BOCS) to 40 patients with BD, and the Young Mania RatingScale (YMRS) and the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) to 42 patients withOCD. We observed clinically significant OCS (Y-BOCS score ≥ 16) in 20% of BDsubjects, and current hypomania or mania in 16.7% and 19% of OCD patientsrespectively. A significant positive correlation between age and YMRS was detectedin OCD females, p = 0.04. We here confirmed the high comorbidity inthe bipolar and obsessive-compulsive dimensions. Numerous studies identifythe clinical burden, diagnostic difficulties and treatment intricacy of this comorbidity,which warrants for further research to assist this sensible population.We illustrate the challenges of pharmacological and psychological treatment,and the issue of family history of psychopathology, with two conspicuousclinical vignettes extracted from the studied sample.

Cross-cultural differences in obsessive-compulsive symptom dimensions across young adults in Mexico and USA

ABSTRACT Despite cross-cultural differences in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptomology, little work has been extended in those in Mexico. To bridge this gap, the current study administered standardised and culturally-validated measures of OCD and a critical cultural construct – spirituality – to young adults in Mexico (n = 430) and the USA (n = 194). Linear regression analyses indicated that individuals in Mexico reported significantly greater scores on all obsessive-compulsive (OC) dimensions, when compared to those in the USA. The association between nationality and all OC symptom dimensions (except responsibility for harm) depended upon degree of spirituality; as spirituality increased, OCD severity decreased in the Mexican sample and increased in the USA sample. The potentially protective role of spirituality in Mexican participants may be explained by the collectivist culture, which can inform culturally-tailored interventions. Our study was limited by our analogue sample and cross-sectional design. Future researchers should collect longitudinal data and employ random sampling methods.

The Emotional Schemas and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptom Dimensions in People with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Growing research shows an association between emotional schemas and psychopathology. Therefore, the study of emotional schemas in psychiatric disorders is an important issue regarding psychopathology. Also, emotional processes are important factors in relation to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), but experimentally no study has examined the relations of emotional schemas to obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptom dimensions in people with OCD. The aims of this study were to compare emotional schemas between people with OCD and non-clinical control participants and to investigate the relationships between emotional schemas and OC symptom dimensions in OCD. Eighty individuals with OCD completed the Leahy Emotional Schema Scale (LESS) and measures of clinical characteristics. Results showed that people with OCD had higher scores on the maladaptive emotional schemas of guilt and uncontrollability than non-clinical control group. Non-clinical control participants had higher scores on the adaptive emotional schema of higher values than people with OCD. Guilt significantly predicted the OC symptom dimensions of responsibility for harm and symmetry after controlling for clinical characteristics. Uncontrollability was a significant predictor of the OC dimensions of unacceptable thoughts. These findings indicate that specific dimensions of maladaptive emotional schemas such as guilt and uncontrollability may be associated with some specific OC symptom dimensions in people with OCD. This study provided more evidence for Leahy’s emotional schema model in people with OCD.

Psychological status of nursing survivors in China and its associated factors: 6 years after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

PurposeNursing survivors are often not only the victims but also the rescuers in a disaster. Severe natural disasters can cause them long-term psychological impact. This study aimed to investigate the psychological status of nursing survivors and its associated factors 6 years after the severe earthquake that occurred in Wenchuan, Sichuan, on May 12, 2008.MethodsThe study used a cross-sectional design. A total of 597 nurses who survived the earthquake and took care of victims were recruited about 6 years after the disaster. They completed a self-report questionnaire assessing information about demographics, earthquake-related characteristics, psychological status, posttraumatic stress disorder, and posttraumatic growth and resilience.ResultsThe mean score on the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R) was (123.56±41.26). Of symptoms indicated by the SCL-90-R, obsessive-compulsive dimension had the highest score (1.62±0.62). The psychological status of nursing survivors differed with the title, monthly per capita household income, financial loss, health status, residential satisfaction, and satisfaction with leaders and colleagues. Severe financial loss and poor health status were significant factors of psychological distress. In addition, psychological status was negatively related to posttraumatic stress disorder and posttraumatic growth, and positively related to resilience.ConclusionNursing survivors had a relatively normal level of psychological status 6 years after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. However, psychological symptoms such as obsessive-compulsive patterns still remained. Interventions focusing on the improvement of financial subsidies and physical health may be particularly useful in reducing psychological problems after the disaster.

The "Obsessive Paradox": The Complex Relationship Between Cognitive and Obsessive Dimensions in Schizophrenia.

The objective of the study was to investigate the relationship between cognitive functions and obsessive-compulsive dimension in schizophrenia and a possible moderating effect of schizophrenia symptom dimensions on this association. Sixty-one schizophrenia patients were administered the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS), and the Matrics Consensus Cognitive Battery. A U-shaped curve described a gradual transition from an inverse association to a positive relationship between YBOCS and processing speed scores, along a severity gradient of obsessive dimension. This effect ("the obsessive paradox") was not moderated by other symptom dimensions. The present study suggests that severe obsessive-compulsive symptoms may participate to counterbalance processing speed impairment independently from other symptom dimensions. These results highlight the complexity of the relationship between cognitive and obsessive dimensions in schizophrenia.

Heritability of obsessive\u2013compulsive trait dimensions in youth from the general population

Obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) is a heritable childhood-onset psychiatric disorder that may represent the extreme of obsessive–compulsive (OC) traits that are widespread in the general population. We report the heritability of the Toronto Obsessive–Compulsive Scale (TOCS), a new measure designed to assess the complete range of OC traits in youth. We also examined the dimensional nature of the TOCS and the degree to which genetic effects are unique or shared between dimensions. OC traits were measured using the TOCS in 16,718 youth (6–18 years) at a science museum. We conducted a factor analysis to identify OC trait dimensions. We used univariate and multivariate twin models to estimate the heritability of OC trait dimensions in a subset of twins (220 pairs). Six OC dimensions were identified: Cleaning/Contamination, Symmetry/Ordering, Rumination, Superstition, Counting/Checking, and Hoarding. The TOCS total score (74%) and each OC dimension was heritable (30–77%). Hoarding was not highly correlated with other OC dimensions, but did share genetic effects. Shared genetics accounted for most of the shared variance among dimensions, whereas unique environment accounted for the majority of dimension-specific variance. One exception was Hoarding, which had considerable unique genetic factors. A latent trait did not account for the shared variance between dimensions. In conclusion, OC traits and individual OC dimensions were heritable, although the degree of shared and dimension-specific etiological factors varied by dimension. The TOCS may be informative for genetic research of OC traits in youth. Genetic research of OC traits should consider both OC dimension and total trait scores.

Difficulties in emotion regulation and symptom dimensions in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder

The present research aimed to investigate the difficulties in emotion regulation (DER) among patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and to predict obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptom dimensions based on DER dimensions. Eighty outpatients with OCD and 80 normal controls completed the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), the Obsessive Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R), the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21). OCD patients revealed significantly higher scores on DER dimensions including lack of emotional clarity, limited access to emotion regulation strategies and non-acceptance of emotional responses than healthy controls. Partial correlations indicated significant associations between OC dimensions such as checking/doubting, obsessing, mental neutralizing, and ordering with non-acceptance of emotional responses, checking/doubting with lack of emotional awareness, and ordering with limited access to emotion regulation strategies. Results indicated that non-acceptance of emotional responses was a significant predictor of checking/doubting, obsessing, mental neutralizing and ordering. These findings revealed that DER, especially non-acceptance of emotional responses, may constitute evidence to improve our understanding of OCD.

Relationship of Probable Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder with Severity of Psychopathology and Impulsivity in a Sample of Male Patients with Opioid Use Disorder.

Objective The aim of the present study was to evaluate relationship of probable attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with severity of psychopathology and the effect of impulsivity on this relationship in a sample of male patients with opioid use disorder (OUD). Methods Participants included 234 patients (115 inpatients and 119 outpatients) with OUD. Participants were evaluated with the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS-v1.1), the Symptom Checklist-90-R (SCL-90-R) and the Short Form of Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11-SF).Results Psychopathology and impulsivity scores were higher among those with the probable ADHD. ADHD scores were midly to moderately correlated with impulsivity and psychopathology scores. In logistic regression analyses, while severity of general psychopathology and impulsivity predicted probable ADHD in the first Model, in the second Model, among dimensions of psychopathology obsessive compulsive (OC) dimension, whereas among dimensions of impulsivity non-planning and motor impulsivity predicted probable ADHD. Conclusion These findings suggest that probable ADHD is related with the severity of psychopathology, particularly OC dimension, while the severity of impulsivity may have an partial mediator (particularly non-planning and motor impulsivity) effect on this relationship among patients with OUD.

Pre-symptomatic testing for neurodegenerative disorders: Middle- to long-term psychopathological impact.

Over the past 20 years, studies have revealed that the communication of a pre-symptomatic test (PST) result for late-onset diseases, such as Huntington’s disease (HD), doesn’t cause psychological disturbance. This cross-sectional study investigated the middle- (4 years) to long-term (7 and 10 years) psychological impact of PST for 3 autosomal dominant late-onset diseases: HD, Machado-Joseph disease (DMJ) and familial amyloid polyneuropathy (FAP). The study included 203 subjects: 170 (84%) agreed to make the PST for FAP, 29 (14%) for HD and 4 (2%) for MJD. They were mostly women (58%) and married (67%). It was considered the cutoffs points: 4 years (middle-term) and 7 and 10 years (long-term) indicating the time after receiving the TPS results. women and widows (oldest) presented the highest mean values for almost all BSI dimensions and the highest values correspond to the obsessive-compulsive dimension. MJD participants presented the highest mean values. No differences were found concerning the PST test results while participants are still asymptomatic. Psychopathology was only present in symptomatic carriers. The onset of the disease seems to assume the trigger for psychological disturbance, regardless the time that has elapsed since the PST result communication or the individual carrier/non-carrier condition.

The Relationship Between Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms, Perfectionism, and Anxiety Sensitivity for Not Just Right Experiences

The obsessive-compulsive core dimensions model posits that compulsions are driven by harm avoidance, or to counteract a sense of incompleteness, known as ‘not just right experiences’ (NJREs). Evidence suggests NJREs are associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms and maladaptive perfectionism. However, manipulations of NJREs have focused on the visual system, and have not been examined in the context of arousal fears associated with anxiety sensitivity (AS). This study examined the relationship between OC symptoms, perfectionism, and AS using in vivo manipulations of NJREs across visual, auditory, and tactile sensory modalities. Using a 2 (NJRE vs. JRE) × 2 (AS vs. no AS) between-subjects design, participants (N = 132) completed behavioural tasks designed to elicit NJREs and assess task discomfort and urge to counteract sensory-specific stimuli. Strong relationships were observed between task ratings and self-report measures of NJREs, incompleteness, OCD symptoms, maladaptive perfectionism, and AS. Those in the NJRE conditions gave significantly higher task ratings compared to JRE conditions; however, there was no main effect for AS. While maladaptive perfectionism and AS were significant predictors of task performance, there was no interaction between the two. The results confirm and extend research suggesting a strong association between NJREs and incompleteness motivations, as well as sensory-affective disturbance in OCD.

The relationship between alexithymia and symptom dimensions in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder

The aims of this study were to evaluate alexithymia subscales [i.e. difficulty in identifying feelings (DIF), difficulty in describing feelings (DDF) and externally-oriented thinking (EOT)] in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and to clarify the relationships of alexithymia subscales to obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptom dimensions and other clinical variables. One hundred fifteen OCD outpatients and two control groups including 80 normal controls and 100 alcoholic patients participated in this study. The data were collected by the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R), the Farsi version of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (FTAS-20) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21). 60.7% of OCD patients and 48% of alcoholics were classified as alexithymics. Those with OCD revealed significantly higher scores on alexithymia and its subscales than alcoholics and normal controls. OCD patients with alexithymia showed higher means in Y-BOCS and its subscales as well as the OC dimensions of mental neutralizing and obsessing than non-alexithymics. DIF and EOT were significantly correlated with obsessing and mental neutralizing respectively. DDF and EOT were related to OCD severity. It was concluded that DIF and EOT may be specific to obsessing and mental neutralizing in OCD patients.

“Pseudoneurotic Schizophrenia” Revisited: The role of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in low-level disorganization psychosishosiser

ObjectiveRecent research has suggested a dual impact of obsessive-compulsive dimension on functioning in schizophrenia with a gradual transition from an improving to a worsening effect depending on obsessive-compulsive symptom (OCS) severity (from mild to moderate-severe). Aim of the present study was to investigate whether this varying effect of OCS on functioning might be mediated or moderated by schizophrenia symptom dimensions or occur independently.MethodSeventy-five patients affected by schizophrenia were administered the SCID-IV, the PANSS, the YBOCS and the SOFAS.The sample was divided into two groups according to the severity of OCS (absent/mild and moderate/high).ResultsIn both groups, a significant interaction between OCS and disorganization dimension was found: the dual effect of OCS on functioning occurred only among patients with low disorganization symptoms while it was no more apparent at higher levels of disorganization (Figure 1).ConclusionData suggest that in patients with schizophrenia, functioning at least in part depends on the interaction between disorganization and OCS. Particularly, mild OCS contributes to higher levels of functioning in patients with psychosis at low levels of disorganization. In keeping with the historical concept of “pseudoneurotic schizophrenia”, we speculate that obsessive dimension might have a pathoplastic influence in milder forms of schizophrenia spectrum disorders, balancing the effect of underlying low disorganization symptoms.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Cognitive Fusion, Experiential Avoidance, and Obsessive Beliefs as Predictors of Obsessive-Compulsive Symptom Dimensions

Cognitive-behavioral models of obsessions, which posit that such symptoms arise from the misinterpretation of intrusive thoughts, have empirical support. Yet, these models do not entirely explain obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms. Cognitive fusion, derived from relational frame theory (RFT), refers to the tendency for behavior to be overly regulated and influenced by cognition, and may incrementally improve our understanding of OC symptoms. The current study examined the extent to which constructs within these theoretical approaches predict various OC symptom dimensions. Participants completed measures of cognitive fusion, psychological flexibility, and obsessive beliefs, as well as OC symptoms. Regression analyses revealed that constructs from cognitive-behavioral and RFT models were associated with certain OC symptom dimensions. Moreover, RFT-related constructs uniquely predicted the unacceptable thoughts OC dimension over and above variance explained by cognitive-behavioral constructs. Results suggest...

Relationship between symptom dimensions and brain morphology in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is known as a clinically heterogeneous disorder characterized by symptom dimensions. Although substantial numbers of neuroimaging studies have demonstrated the presence of brain abnormalities in OCD, their results are controversial. The clinical heterogeneity of OCD could be one of the reasons for this. It has been hypothesized that certain brain regions contributed to the respective obsessive-compulsive dimensions. In this study, we investigated the relationship between symptom dimensions of OCD and brain morphology using voxel-based morphometry to discover the specific regions showing alterations in the respective dimensions of obsessive-compulsive symptoms. The severities of symptom dimensions in thirty-three patients with OCD were assessed using Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R). Along with numerous MRI studies pointing out brain abnormalities in autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) patients, a previous study reported a positive correlation between ASD traits and regional gray matter volume in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and amygdala in OCD patients. We investigated the correlation between gray and white matter volumes at the whole brain level and each symptom dimension score, treating all remaining dimension scores, age, gender, and ASD traits as confounding covariates. Our results revealed a significant negative correlation between washing symptom dimension score and gray matter volume in the right thalamus and a significant negative correlation between hoarding symptom dimension score and white matter volume in the left angular gyrus. Although our result was preliminary, our findings indicated that there were specific brain regions in gray and white matter that contributed to symptom dimensions in OCD patients.

Examination of a Bifactor Model of Obsessive-Compulsive Symptom Dimensions.

Although obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms are observed along four dimensions (contamination, responsibility for harm, order/symmetry, and unacceptable thoughts), the structure of the dimensions remains unclear. The current study evaluated a bifactor model of OC symptoms among those with and without obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The goals were (a) to evaluate if OC symptoms should be conceptualized as unidimensional or whether distinct dimensions should be interpreted and (b) to use structural equation modeling to examine the convergence of the OC dimensions above and beyond a general dimension with related criteria. Results revealed that a bifactor model fit the data well and that OC symptoms were influenced by a general dimension and by four dimensions. Measurement invariance of the bifactor model was also supported among those with and without OCD. However, the general OC dimension accounted for only half of the variability in OC symptoms, with the remaining variability accounted for by distinct dimensions. Despite evidence of multidimensionality, the dimensions were unreliable after covarying for the general OC dimension. However, the four dimensions did significantly converge with a latent OC spectrum factor above and beyond the general OC dimension. The implications of these findings for conceptualizing the structure of OCD are discussed.

Obsessive-compulsive symptoms interact with disorganization in influencing social functioning in schizophrenia

Objective Recent research has suggested a dual impact of obsessive-compulsive dimension on functioning in schizophrenia with a gradual transition from an improving to a worsening effect depending on obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) severity (from mild to moderate-severe). Aim of the present study was to investigate whether this varying effect of OCS on functioning might be mediated or moderated by schizophrenia symptom dimensions or occur independently. Method Seventy-five patients affected by schizophrenia were administered the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Disorders, the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale and the Social and Occupational Functioning Assessment. The sample was divided into two groups according to the severity of OCS (absent/mild and moderate/high OCS group). Results In both groups, the effect of OCS on functioning was not mediated by their effect on positive, negative or disorganization symptoms. Conversely, a significant interaction between OCS and disorganization dimension was found: the dual effect of OCS on functioning occurred only among patients with low disorganization symptoms while it was no more apparent at high levels of disorganization. Conclusion Data suggest that in patients with functioning at least in part depends on the interaction between disorganization and OCS. Particularly, since mild OCS contribute to lesser functional decline in patients with low disorganized psychosis, they may favor the constitution of a subtype of schizophrenia with a better functioning. In keeping with the historical concept of pseudoneurotic schizophrenia, we speculate that obsessive dimension might have a pathoplastic influence, balancing the effect of low disorganization symptoms.