Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Obsessive thoughts in OCD are perceived by the patient as appropriate and sensible.

The obsessional urge or idea in OCD is recognized as coming from within the self, yet still alien to the personality.

Attempts to dispel unwelcome thoughts or urges in OCD typically do not lead to any significant anxiety.

Obsessive actions in OCD are always rational and practical in nature.

The feeling of subjective compulsion in OCD must be resisted and can involve ruminating on abstract topics.

ICD-9 provides a detailed and extensive description of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

According to the DSM-5, OCD diagnosis requires both obsessions and compulsions to be present.

The ICD-10 requires obsessional symptoms or compulsive acts to be present for at least 2 successive weeks for an OCD diagnosis.

In DSM-5, obsessions and compulsions must take at least 2 hours per day to be clinically significant.

Compulsive acts in OCD are intrinsically pleasurable according to the ICD-10 classification.

Obsessive-compulsive symptoms are uncommon in schizophrenia, which may require separate treatment.

Obsessional thoughts in OCD are recognized by patients as external and not their own.

The female-to-male ratio of OCD in clinic populations is closer to 2.

Obsessional impulses often include urges to perform violent or embarrassing acts.

Obsessional ruminations involve internal debates about everyday actions.

Obsessional phobias typically occur in situations with no obvious triggers.

Some rituals in OCD are followed by a reduction in anxiety, while others can increase anxiety.

Obsessional thoughts and rituals often lead to rapid and efficient performance in people with OCD.

Freud believed that OCD symptoms occur when a person regresses to the genital stage of development.

People with OCD are less likely to perform well on 'set-shifting' tasks.

Compulsivity and impulsivity are completely opposing behaviors that cannot coexist.

Dysfunction in cortico-striatal-thalamic loops is associated with the development of OCD, involving areas like the ventral striatum and anterior cingulate cortex.

Cognitive theory suggests that people with OCD struggle primarily because of the intrusive thoughts themselves, not their inability to control these thoughts.

Approximately one-third of OCD cases improve within one year.

The concordance rate in twin studies was greater in dizygotic pairs than in monozygotic pairs.

Group A streptococcal infections have been linked to the development of OCD in some children.

Functional imaging studies in OCD patients have shown increased activity solely in the striatum at rest.

A fourfold increase in the risk of OCD in first-degree relatives compared with control rates was observed.

Structural imaging in OCD patients has consistently revealed a decrease in grey matter volume in the orbitofrontal cortex.

Obsessive-compulsive symptoms were common among patients affected by encephalitis lethargica after the Spanish 'flu pandemic of 1918-1919.

Dynamic psychotherapy is highly effective in treating OCD symptoms.

Neurosurgery for OCD often leads to significant and long-lasting improvement in symptoms.

Deep Brain Stimulation is a well-established and widely used treatment for OCD.

Exposure and Response Prevention is a long-term treatment that can be challenging for patients with severe symptoms.

Patients treated with medication for OCD never experience relapses when the medication is stopped.

First-line medications for OCD include SSRI's, and if they are ineffective, clomipramine or an antipsychotic drug might be considered.

A thorough search for a depressive disorder should be made in every patient who presents with OCD.

Repeated reassurances about obsessive ruminations are considered helpful in treating OCD.

Long-term maintenance treatment may be necessary for patients with OCD.

Clomipramine is currently used as a first-line treatment for OCD.

The prognosis for OCD is worse when the onset occurs in childhood.

Selective serotonin uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) appear to have similar efficacy to clomipramine in treating OCD.

Cognitive therapy aims to increase the patient's attempts to suppress obsessional thoughts.

Anxiolytic drugs should be prescribed continuously for more than 2-4 weeks at a time.

Exposure and response prevention for OCD is effective for about two-thirds of patients with moderately severe rituals.