title: Obsessive-compulsive symptoms in schizophrenia: prevalence, clinical features and treatment. A literature review.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the prevalence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in schizophrenia, the clinical features of the sub-group of patients with schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive symptoms and treatment options for these patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  A literature review of studies investigating the prevalence, clinical features and treatment of patients with schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive symptoms.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in schizophrenic patients, while generally found to be higher than in the general population, varies widely between different studies. Differences in symptom severity between schizophrenic patients with obsessive-compulsive symptoms and those without have been found, however findings so far have been inconsistent. A number of case reports have implicated atypical antipsychotic medication in the emergence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms. There is evidence to support a combined treatment with an antipsychotic agent and an anti-obsessional agent.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Studies investigating the prevalence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in schizophrenia and their effect on the clinical symptoms have yielded inconsistent results and further studies using larger samples of patients and looking at different subgroups of schizophrenic patients are required. Treatment options need further research to investigate whether the results of relatively small studies can be replicated.
authors.affiliation: Abarbanel Mental Health Centre, Bat Yam, Israel.
authors.forename: Elliot
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hadi
authors.forename: Yifah
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Greenberg
authors.forename: Pinkhas
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sirota
mesh_terms: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015897:Comorbidity; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D006801:Humans; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D011379:Prognosis; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology
chemical_list: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents