title: Compulsive disorders.
abstract: Compulsive disorders include a diverse group of conditions characterized by excessive thoughts or preoccupations combined with poorly controlled behaviors. They include trichotillomania, kleptomania, pathologic gambling, compulsive buying disorder, compulsive sexual behavior, and compulsive computer use. Some investigators have suggested that these conditions constitute a spectrum of disorders linked to obsessive-compulsive disorder. Others have questioned the validity of this conceptualization, and have debated the relationship between these disorders. Nevertheless, much has been learned about compulsive disorders, and there have been some successes with psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacologic treatments. Recent therapy-based interventions have moved from psychodynamic treatments toward cognitive-behavioral modalities. Serotonin reuptake inhibitors remain the best-studied pharmacologic treatment, but researchers have also explored other antidepressants, opioid agonists, mood stabilizers, and atypical antipsychotics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Psychiatry Research MEB, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA. donald-black@uiowa.edu
authors.forename: John M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kuzma
authors.forename: Donald W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Black
mesh_terms: D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D007174:Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors