OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE DISORDER (OCD)

An obsession is defined as;

An idea, impulse, or image which intrudes into the conscious awareness repeatedly.
Patient tries to resist against it but is unable to
Failure to resist leads to marked distress

An obsession is usually associated with compulsion. Compulsion is defined as

A form of behaviour which usually follows obsessions.
It is aimed at either preventing or neutralizing the distress or fear arising out of obsession.

OCD is characterized by persistent and recurring thoughts, urges or images that lead to repetitive behaviours or mental acts.

Lifetime prevalence is 2-3 % and the average age of onset is 20 years of age

Depression is very commonly associated with OCD. It is estimated that at least half of the patients of OCD have major depressive episodes while many others have mild depression
Major types of obsession commonly seen in clinical practice are washers and checkers
In washers the obsession of contamination with dirt, germ body excretion and like. The compulsion is washing of hands, whole body repeatedly many times a day
In checkers type, the person has multiple doubts, e.g. the door has not been locked, kitchen gas has been left open, etc. the compulsion, of course, is checking repeatedly to remove the doubt
Ego Dystonic Behaviour or Thought patterns that are inconsistent with or repulsive to one’s self of self

Differential diagnosis

Obsessive-Compulsive personality disorder: Excessive perfectionism and rigid control regarding real-life concerns
Generalised anxiety disorder: Recurrent thoughts on real-life concerns
Tic Disorder
Hoarding Disorder: Difficulty discarding objects

Clinical diagnosis is done based on ICD11 or DSM 5 criteria
Y-BOCS ( Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale) is used to assess the severity of the condition.

Internal medicines:

Procedures

Manasika Roga

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