title: Obsessive-compulsive disorder: a new risk factor for Alzheimer disease?
abstract: We describe a case of a 75-year-old woman referred to the Memory Clinic of the neurological Department of Charles Nicolle Hospital, Tunis, for cognitive decline and behavioral disturbances. Her past medical history was marked by severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with contamination obsessions and washing compulsions. She has a family history for OCD and/or of dementia in 15 members. Clinical features, along with neuropsychological findings and Brain imaging were in favor of Alzheimer disease (AD). The present report is the first family study reporting the possible association of OCD and AD. The glutamatergic dysfunction may be a common pathophysiology of OCD and AD explaining this association.
authors.affiliation: Neurological Department, Charles Nicolle Hospital, Boulevard du 9 Avril, 1006 Tunis, Tunisia. helamrabet@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Hela
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mrabet Khiari
authors.forename: Afef
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Achouri
authors.forename: Nadia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ben Ali
authors.forename: Aroua
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cherif
authors.forename: Hend
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Batti
authors.forename: Taieb
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Messaoud
authors.forename: Amel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mrabet
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D010375:Pedigree; D012307:Risk Factors