Clinical predictors of quality of life in a large sample of adult obsessive-compulsive disorder outpatients.

BACKGROUND: OCD causes impairment in different areas of the patients' quality of life (QoL), such as sociability, family relationships, and occupational performance. The literature has emphasized the relevance of assessing QoL as a critical outcome in mental health studies. AIMS: The aim of this study was to investigate sociodemographic and clinical predictors of QoL, including treatment response, in a large sample of OCD subjects. PROCEDURES: 575 adult OCD outpatients were interviewed as part of the Brazilian OCD Consortium (CTOC). A smaller number of subjects (N = 143) participated on a clinical trial conducted by one of the CTOC sites. RESULTS: OCD patients were more impaired in their QoL when compared to the Brazilian normative data. Obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) severity had significant correlations with all Medical Outcome Short-Form questionnaire (SF-36) domains. Different OCS dimensions had specific correlations with each SF-36 domain. OCS, depression and anxiety severity significantly increased the impairment risk for the SF-36 domains. Suicidality increased the relative risks for impairment in the Role-Functioning and the Vitality domains by 51% and 17%, respectively. There was a significant improvement in some SF-36 dimensions after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: QoL domains are highly compromised in OCD patients. Each SF-36 domain had distinct associations with sociodemographic and clinical variables, including OCS dimensions, suicidality and treatment response. These findings emphasize the OCD heterogeneity and the need for including QoL assessment in clinical practice and research studies.

Partitioning the heritability of Tourette syndrome and obsessive compulsive disorder reveals differences in genetic architecture.

The direct estimation of heritability from genome-wide common variant data as implemented in the program Genome-wide Complex Trait Analysis (GCTA) has provided a means to quantify heritability attributable to all interrogated variants. We have quantified the variance in liability to disease explained by all SNPs for two phenotypically-related neurobehavioral disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and Tourette Syndrome (TS), using GCTA. Our analysis yielded a heritability point estimate of 0.58 (se = 0.09, p = 5.64e-12) for TS, and 0.37 (se = 0.07, p = 1.5e-07) for OCD. In addition, we conducted multiple genomic partitioning analyses to identify genomic elements that concentrate this heritability. We examined genomic architectures of TS and OCD by chromosome, MAF bin, and functional annotations. In addition, we assessed heritability for early onset and adult onset OCD. Among other notable results, we found that SNPs with a minor allele frequency of less than 5% accounted for 21% of the TS heritability and 0% of the OCD heritability. Additionally, we identified a significant contribution to TS and OCD heritability by variants significantly associated with gene expression in two regions of the brain (parietal cortex and cerebellum) for which we had available expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs). Finally we analyzed the genetic correlation between TS and OCD, revealing a genetic correlation of 0.41 (se = 0.15, p = 0.002). These results are very close to previous heritability estimates for TS and OCD based on twin and family studies, suggesting that very little, if any, heritability is truly missing (i.e., unassayed) from TS and OCD GWAS studies of common variation. The results also indicate that there is some genetic overlap between these two phenotypically-related neuropsychiatric disorders, but suggest that the two disorders have distinct genetic architectures.

Comorbid major depression in obsessive-compulsive disorder patients.

Although major depressive disorder (MDD) has been consistently considered the most frequent complication of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), little is known about the clinical characteristics of patients with both disorders. This study assessed 815 Brazilian OCD patients using a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation. Clinical and demographic variables, including OCD symptom dimensions, were compared among OCD patients with and without MDD. Our findings showed that prevalence rates of current MDD (32%) and lifetime MDD (67.5%) were similar for both sexes in this study. In addition, patients with comorbid MDD had higher severity scores of OCD symptoms. There was no preferential association of MDD with any particular OCD symptom dimension. This study supports the notion that depressed OCD patients present more severe general psychopathology.

Eating disorders in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: prevalence and clinical correlates.

OBJECTIVE: The objective is to evaluate the prevalence and associated clinical characteristics of eating disorders (ED) in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). METHOD: This is a cross-sectional study comparing 815 patients with OCD. Participants were assessed with structured interviews and scales: SCID-I, Y-BOCS, Dimensional Y-BOCS, BABS, Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventories. RESULTS: Ninety-two patients (11.3%) presented the following EDs: binge-eating disorders [= 59 (7.2%)], bulimia nervosa [= 16 (2.0%)], or anorexia nervosa [= 17 (2.1%)]. Compared to OCD patients without ED (OCD-Non-ED), OCD-ED patients were more likely to be women with previous psychiatric treatment. Mean total scores in Y-BOCS, Dimensional Y-BOCS, and BABS were similar within groups. However, OCD-ED patients showed higher lifetime prevalence of comorbid conditions, higher anxiety and depression scores, and higher frequency of suicide attempts than did the OCD-Non-ED group. Primarily diagnosed OCD patients with comorbid ED may be associated with higher clinical severity. DISCUSSION: Future longitudinal studies should investigate dimensional correlations between OCD and ED.

Obsessive-compulsive symptoms and disorder in patients with schizophrenia treated with clozapine or haloperidol.

We conducted a cross-sectional study to compare the prevalence and severity of obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCSs) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in patients with schizophrenia treated with clozapine or haloperidol. Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Axis I disorders-patient edition was used to diagnose schizophrenia and OCD. Sixty subjects, 40 of them using clozapine and 20 using haloperidol, completed the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale, the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), and the Clinical Global Impression. The prevalence of OCD in patients taking clozapine was 20%, whereas the prevalence of patients taking haloperidol was 10%, although this difference was not statistically significant (P = .540). However, patients using clozapine showed higher severity of OCSs than patients using haloperidol (P = .027) did. When schizophrenia patients were divided according to the presence or absence of OCD or OCSs, patients with schizophrenia and OCD or OCSs showed higher severity of schizophrenia symptoms when compared to those with schizophrenia without OCD and OCSs (P = .002). A PANSS total score higher than 70 and the use of antidepressants were predictors of the presence of OCSs or OCD. Schizophrenia patients taking clozapine had higher severity scores both in obsessive-compulsive and schizophrenia rating scales. These results may support an association between the exacerbation of obsessive-compulsive phenomena and the use of clozapine.

Perfectionism and sensory phenomena: phenotypic components of obsessive-compulsive disorder.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to investigate how perfectionism and sensory phenomena (SP) interact as possible phenotypic components of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). METHODS: Forty-seven adult outpatients, meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, criteria for OCD, and a control group of 41 community subjects were assessed using the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (FMPS), the University of São Paulo-Sensory Phenomena Scale, and other standard measures of OCD severity. RESULTS: Three of the FMPS subscales ("concern over mistakes," "doubts about action," and "parental criticism") were significantly different between OCD patients and control subjects. All subtypes of SP were significantly more frequent and more severe in OCD than in control subjects. The "incompleteness" subtype of SP was associated with high scores on all dimensions of the FMPS, whereas the "just-right" subtype of SP was only associated with "doubts about action," "personal standards," and "organization" subscales of the FMPS. CONCLUSIONS: Presence and severity of SP and specific elements of perfectionism clearly distinguish OCD patients from healthy control subjects. Some SP subtypes are associated with specific FPMS subscale scores, whereas others are not. These results emphasize the relevance of assessing different subtypes of perfectionism and SP in OCD patients as important subcomponents of the OCD phenotype.

Sensory phenomena in obsessive-compulsive disorder and tic disorders: a review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION: A variety of subjective experiences have been reported to be associated with the symptom expression of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and Tourette syndrome (TS). First described in TS patients, these subjective experiences have been defined in different ways. There is no consensus in the literature on how to best define subjective experiences. This lack of consensus may hinder the understanding of study results and prevents the possibility of including them in the search for etiological factors associated with OCD and TS. METHODS: The objective of this article was to review the descriptions of subjective experiences in the English-language literature from 1980-2007. This meta-analytic review was carried out using the English-language literature from 1980-2007 available on MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane Library databases using the following search terms: premonitory urges, sensory tics, "just-right" perceptions, sensory phenomena, sensory experiences, incompleteness, "not just-right" phenomena, obsessive-compulsive disorder and TS, including OCD and/or TS, in all combination searches. We also searched for the references cited in each article previously found that referred to the aforementioned terms. Thirty-one articles were included in the study. RESULTS: Subjective experiences, in particular, the sensory phenomena, were important phenotypic variables in the characterization of the tic-related OCD subtype and were more frequent in the early-onset OCD subtype. There is a paucity of studies using structured interviews to assess sensory phenomena, their epidemiology and the etiological mechanisms associated with sensory phenomena. CONCLUSION: The current review provides some evidence that sensory phenomena can be useful to identify more homogenous subgroups of OCD and TS patients and should be included as important phenotypic variables in future clinical, genetic, neuroimaging, and treatment-response studies.

Anxiety disorders and rheumatic Fever: is there an association?

INTRODUCTION: Findings suggest that obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and related disorders, referred to as obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders (OCSDs), are more common in patients with rheumatic fever (RF). OBJECTIVES: To determine whether RF or Sydenham's chorea increases the probability of anxiety disorders in the relatives of individuals with RF with and without SC. METHODS: This was a case-control family study in which 98 probands and 389 first-degree relatives (FDRs) were assessed using structured psychiatric interviews. A Poisson regression model was used to determine whether the presence of any disorder in one family member influences the rate of disorders in the remaining family members. RESULTS: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) occurred more frequently in the FDRs of RF probands than in those of control probands (P=.018). The presence of RF, GAD, or separation anxiety disorder in one family member significantly increased the chance of OCSDs in another member of the family. CONCLUSION: We found familial aggregation among RF, GAD, and OCSDs. Clinicians should be aware of the possible familial relationship between GAD and OCSDs in their RF patients and their family members, which may suggest a genetic component between them. Further studies on OCD should include anxiety disorders to better define OCD spectrum.

Association of polymorphisms within the promoter region of the tumor necrosis factor-alpha with clinical outcomes of rheumatic fever.

Rheumatic fever (RF)/rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is an inflammatory disease with a complex etiology in which Group A streptococci within a genetically susceptible host untreated for strep-throat may deviate the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system towards recognition of autoantigens. The TNFA gene has been associated with a number of autoimmune diseases, including RF. We investigated whether the G-308A and G-238A polymorphisms of the TNFA gene are associated with clinical outcomes of RF in a cohort of 318 patients and 281 healthy controls (HC). Both polymorphisms showed borderline associations with RF (TNFA -308G/A, OR=1.4 [1-2.2], P=0.026; TNFA -238G/A, OR=1.9 [1-3.3], P=0.015). The presence of either one of the minor alleles (-308A and -238A) was more common among patients with RF/RHD than controls (P=0.0006). Stratification of patients according to clinical phenotype also showed significant associations between presence of either one of the minor alleles and RHD (Pc=0.0006) when compared with controls. This association was stronger with the development of aortic valve lesions. In contrast, there was no association between genotype and Sydenham's chorea or RF patients with mild carditis. In conclusion, we show that the TNFA is a susceptibility locus for RF. The ability to predict which RF patients will develop valve lesion may have therapeutic, economic and social implications.

Impact of age at onset and duration of illness on the expression of comorbidities in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

BACKGROUND: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) patients usually experience comorbidities including tics, trichotillomania, body dysmorphic disorder, and mood and anxiety disorders. The present report verifies how age at onset of obsessive-compulsive symptoms and duration of illness are associated with comorbid diagnoses in OCD patients. METHOD: Psychiatric comorbidity was assessed using a structured clinical interview in 161 consecutive outpatients referred for treatment between 1996 and 2001 who met DSM-IV criteria for OCD. Age at onset and duration of illness were retrospectively assessed by direct interviews. RESULTS: An earlier age at onset of obsessive-compulsive symptoms was associated with tic disorders, while longer illness duration was associated with depressive disorder (major depressive disorder or dysthymia) and social phobia. CONCLUSION: Age at onset and duration of OCD illness are meaningful variables affecting the expression of comorbidities in OCD. Tic disorders and OCD may share common etiologic pathways. Depressive disorders, in contrast, may be secondary complications of OCD.

Trajectory in obsessive-compulsive disorder comorbidities.

The main goal of this study is to contribute to the understanding of the trajectory of comorbid disorders associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) according to the first manifested psychiatric disorder and its impact in the clinical course of OCD and subsequent psychiatric comorbidities. One thousand and one OCD patients were evaluated at a single time point. Standardized instruments were used to determine the current and lifetime psychiatric diagnoses (Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I and for impulse-control disorders) as well as to establish current obsessive-compulsive, depressive and anxiety symptom severity (Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale; Dimensional Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale, Beck Depression and Anxiety Inventories and the OCD Natural History Questionnaire). To analyze the distribution of comorbidities according to age at onset Bayesian approach was used. Five hundred eight patients had the first OC symptom onset till the age of 10 years old. The first comorbidity to appear in the majority of the sample was separation anxiety disorder (17.5%, n=175), followed by ADHD (5.0%, n=50) and tic disorders (4.4%, n=44). OCD patients that presented with separation anxiety disorder as first diagnosis had higher lifetime frequency of post-traumatic stress disorder (p=0.003), higher scores in the Sexual/Religious dimension (p=0.04), Beck Anxiety (p<0.001) and Depression (p=0.005) Inventories. OCD patients that initially presented with ADHD had higher lifetime frequencies of substance abuse and dependence (p<0.001) and worsening OCD course (p=0.03). OCD patients that presented with tic disorders as first diagnosis had higher lifetime frequencies of OC spectrum disorders (p=0.03). OCD is a heterogeneous disorder and that the presence of specific comorbid diagnoses that predate the onset of OCD may influence its clinical presentation and course over the lifetime.

Higher prevalence of obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders in rheumatic fever.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to compare the prevalence of obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders (OCSD) in psychiatric outpatients with and without a history of rheumatic fever (RF). METHODS: An analytical cross-sectional study assessing a large sample of consecutive psychiatric outpatients at a Brazilian private practice was conducted during a 10-year period. Psychiatric diagnoses were made by a senior psychiatrist based on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition. Best-estimate diagnosis procedure was also performed. RESULTS: The total sample comprised 678 subjects, 13 of whom (1.92%) presented with a previous history of RF. This group showed a higher prevalence of subclinical obsessive-compulsive disorder (P=.025) and OCSD (P=.007) when compared to individuals with no such history. CONCLUSIONS: A previous history of RF was associated with OCSD. These results suggest that clinicians should be encouraged to actively investigate obsessive-compulsive symptoms and related disorders in patients with a positive history of RF.

Obsessive-compulsive symptoms in heart disease patients with and without history of rheumatic fever.

By comparing 51 heart disease patients with history of rheumatic fever and 46 heart disease patients with no rheumatic fever history, the authors found a higher prevalence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms in rheumatic fever subjects. This suggests that rheumatic fever activity is not a necessary condition for the expression of neuropsychiatric symptoms.

Clinical features associated with treatment response in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the effect of sociodemographic and clinical features on the short-term response to pharmacological treatment in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). We focused especially on investigating factors previously associated with poorer prognosis, such as comorbidity with tic disorders, early onset of symptoms, and sensory phenomena preceding compulsions, which have been described as common in both tic-related and early-onset OCD. METHOD: The study involved 41 consecutive adult patients with OCD diagnosed according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria and was conducted at the OCD Spectrum Disorders Clinic of the University of Sao Paulo School of Medicine in São Paulo, Brazil, between January of 2000 and December of 2001. All patients were treated exclusively with oral clomipramine for 14 weeks. Treatment response, measured for Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale score decrease from baseline, was assessed by an investigator blinded as to the variables of interest present. RESULTS: Linear regression analysis showed that having a partner and sensory phenomena preceding compulsions were associated with better response to clomipramine treatment (P = .04 and P = .002, respectively). Tic comorbidity and early onset of symptoms were not associated with poorer response. CONCLUSIONS: In OCD, having a partner and sensory phenomena preceding compulsions seem to be associated with a favorable response to pharmacological treatment.

Obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders in rheumatic fever patients.

Based on five cases of obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders in rheumatic fever patients, the authors discuss the range of psychiatric disorders associated with poststreptococcal autoimmune reactions and its implications for immunology/CNS interaction.