title: [Obsessive-compulsive disorders: how to recognize and treat them].
abstract: Obsessive-compulsive disorders are characterized by recurrent and persistent obsessive thoughts that are experienced as obtrusive and inappropriate, and (often stereotypic and repetitive) compulsive actions. Their lifetime prevalence is estimated to be 1-2%. Men and women are affected by such disorders in about equal numbers. The most common comorbidities are depression and anxiety. The etiology is considered to encompass both psychological and neurobiological aspects. The most effective therapeutic approach is cognitive behavioral therapy with exposure and response prevention as the central element, which leads to a lasting improvement in symptoms in some 60-80% of the patients. If a depressive disorder is also present, or if obsessive thoughts are predominant, a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy and pharmacological treatment with (selective) serotonin reuptake inhibitors has proven effective.
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie, Universitatsklinikum Schleswig-Holstein, Campus Lübeck. k.wahl@psychiatry.uni-luebeck.de
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Walh
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kordon
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hohagen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy; D015995:Prevalence; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012737:Sex Factors
chemical_list: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors