The treatment of severe, chronic, resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder. An evaluation of an in-patient programme using behavioural psychotherapy in combination with other treatments.
This study examined 49 in-patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder who were treated over three years. The patients had failed to respond to previous treatment. Treatment consisted of in-patient exposure, occasionally combined with other interventions individually tailored to the patient's specific difficulties. This resulted in significant clinical improvements and an average 40% reduction in rituals in 31 (63.3%) of these chronic patients. These gains were maintained at an average 19-month follow-up. Checking rituals were more likely to be associated with good outcome. Women had a later onset of the disorder and a slight tendency to better prognosis. No other predictors of outcome were found.
Drummond
L M
LM
Department of Mental Health Sciences, St George's Hospital Medical School, London.
D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D000368:Aged; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000592:standards*; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D011379:Prognosis; D012737:Sex Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome