Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Childhood and Adolescence

Abstract

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a severe mental illness that causes significant stress in children and adolescents. It is possible to infer three distinct etiologies – neurobiology, environment and dysfunctional interpretative patterns. Certain characteristics are attributable to OCD with onset in childhood or adolescence as higher prevalence in males, increased frequency of isolated compulsions (more cleaning, repeating and checking), higher rate of aggressive obsessions and more common accumulation behaviors. There are several psychiatric comorbidities associated with OCD like anxiety disorder and major depression. The first-line treatment in OCD is the association of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) and individual psychotherapy.

The authors reviewed the clinical records of patients diagnosed with OCD observed in a child and adolescence psychiatry liaison consultation between April and September 2015, inclusive, aiming to characterize the sample, to describe the typical clinical picture and to evaluate the existence of physical and/or psychiatric comorbidities, comparing the results with those expected in literature.

The typical patient profile found was a 12-year-old male, living with relatives, with no neonatal complications, with stable home environment, without family psychiatric history, with associated medical comorbidities, with age of onset symptoms at 10.5 years-old, with only an obsession (contamination), with only a compulsion (cleaning or checking), with psychiatric comorbidities, treated with SSRI and without psychologyaccompaniment.

There are some limitations that must be taken into account because the sample was taken from a liaison psychiatry consultation, but in general terms, the results were similar to those described in the literature.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.