title: Treatment of late-onset OCD following basal ganglia infarct.
abstract: Current consensus on the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) includes cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) in the form of exposure and response prevention (ERP). However, the generalizability of these methods to elderly populations remains largely undocumented. This clinical case study examines the effectiveness of medications and intensive, inpatient ERP in an elderly patient with onset of OCD following basal ganglia infarcts. There was a dramatic reduction from baseline to follow-up in both obsessions and compulsions with Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale [YBOCS; Goodman et al., 1989] total scores decreasing by over 20 points. These gains were maintained up to 1 year post-treatment. Age-specific issues and the application of standard therapeutic methods to elderly clients are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60612, USA. ccarmin@psych.uic.edu
authors.forename: Cheryl N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Carmin
authors.forename: Pamela S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Wiegartz
authors.forename: Uzma
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Yunus
authors.forename: Karen L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Gillock
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D020144:Basal Ganglia Cerebrovascular Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D002544:Cerebral Infarction / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003887:Desensitization, Psychologic; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D006801:Humans; D008140:Lorazepam / Q000008:administration & dosage; D008297:Male; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D020280:Sertraline / Q000008:administration & dosage; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D008140:Lorazepam; D020280:Sertraline