title: Hoarding in obsessive-compulsive disorder: results from the OCD Collaborative Genetics Study.
abstract: Hoarding behavior occurs frequently in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Results from previous studies suggest that individuals with OCD who have hoarding symptoms are clinically different than non-hoarders and may represent a distinct clinical group. In the present study, we compared 235 hoarding to 389 non-hoarding participants, all of whom had OCD, collected in the course of the OCD Collaborative Genetics Study. We found that, compared to non-hoarding individuals, hoarders were more likely to have symmetry obsessions and repeating, counting, and ordering compulsions; poorer insight; more severe illness; difficulty initiating or completing tasks; and indecision. Hoarders had a greater prevalence of social phobia and generalized anxiety disorder. Hoarders also had a greater prevalence of obsessive-compulsive and dependent personality disorders. Five personality traits were independently associated with hoarding: miserliness, preoccupation with details, difficulty making decisions, odd behavior or appearance, and magical thinking. Hoarding and indecision were more prevalent in the relatives of hoarding than of non-hoarding probands. Hoarding in relatives was associated with indecision in probands, independently of proband hoarding status. The findings suggest that hoarding behavior may help differentiate a distinct clinical subgroup of people with OCD and may aggregate in some OCD families. Indecision may be a risk factor for hoarding in these families.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 600 N. Wolfe Street, Meyer 4-181, Baltimore, MD 21287-7228, USA. jacks@jhmi.edu
authors.forename: Jack F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Samuels
authors.forename: O Joseph
authors.initials: OJ
authors.lastname: Bienvenu
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pinto
authors.forename: Abby J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Fyer
authors.forename: James T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: McCracken
authors.forename: Scott L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Rauch
authors.forename: Dennis L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: Marco A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Grados
authors.forename: Benjamin D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Greenberg
authors.forename: James A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Knowles
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Piacentini
authors.forename: Paul A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Cannistraro
authors.forename: Bernadette
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cullen
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Riddle
authors.forename: Steven A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Rasmussen
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Pauls
authors.forename: Virginia L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Willour
authors.forename: Yin Y
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Shugart
authors.forename: Kung-yee
authors.initials: KY
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.forename: Rudolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hoehn-Saric
authors.forename: Gerald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nestadt
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D003192:Compulsive Behavior; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology*; D010551:Personality; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales