Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Introduction
Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
Obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, involves anxious thoughts or
rituals you feel you can't control. If you have OCD, you may be plagued by
persistent, ... more about Obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Behavioral disorder with obsessive thoughts and compulsive acts.
More detailed information about the symptoms,
causes, and treatments of Obsessive-compulsive disorder is available below.
Symptoms of Obsessive-compulsive disorder
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symptoms of Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Treatments for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
See full list of 34
treatments for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Home Diagnostic Testing
Home medical testing related to Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
- Child Behavior: Home Testing
- Mental Health (Adults): Home Testing
- more...»
Wrongly Diagnosed with Obsessive-compulsive disorder?
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Related Patient Stories
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Deaths
Read more about Deaths and Obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Complications
Review possible medical complications related to Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
Causes of Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- The exact cause is still unable to be fully determined but the two main theories are:
- Biological factors - anomalies in the brain structure. This theory is supported by the fact that brain surgery can alleviate some cases.
- Serotonin theory - low levels of serotonin. This theory is supported by the fact that the use of medications to increase serotonin levels (SSRI's) can alleviate symptoms in OCD sufferers.
- The reality may well be that there is more than one cause and this coupled with environmental factors can trigger OCD
- More than half of patients suffer OCD as a life-long chronic condition with periods of exacerbation and improvement
- more causes...»
See full list of 23
causes of Obsessive-compulsive disorder
More information about causes of Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
Disease Topics Related To Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Research the causes of these diseases that are similar to, or related to, Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Undiagnosed Conditions
Commonly undiagnosed diseases in related medical categories:
Misdiagnosis and Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Parental fears about toddler behavior often unfounded: There are many behaviors in infants and toddlers
that may give rise to a fear that the child has some form of mental health condition....read more »
Cluster of diseases with difficult diagnosis issues: There is a well-known list of
medical conditions that are all somewhat difficult to diagnose, and all can present
in a variety of...read more »
Undiagnosed stroke leads to misdiagnosed aphasia: BBC News UK reported on a man who
had been institutionalized and treated for mental illness
because he suffered from sudden...read more »
Alzheimer's disease over-diagnosed: The well-known disease of Alzheimer's disease
is often over-diagnosed.
Patients tend to assume that any memory loss or...read more »
Dementia may be a drug interaction: A common scenario in aged care is for
a patient to show mental decline to dementia.
Whereas this can, of course, occur due to various medical conditions,
such as a ...read more »
ADHD under-diagnosed in adults: Although the over-diagnoses of ADHD
in children is a well-known controversy, the reverse side related to adults.
Some adults can remain undiagnosed, and indeed the condition has usually been
overlooked...read more »
Bipolar disorder misdiagosed as various conditions by primary physicians: Bipolar disorder (manic-depressive disorder)
often fails to be diagnosed correctly by primary care physicians.
Many...read more »
Eating disorders under-diagnosed in men: The typical patient with
an eating disorder is female.
The result is that men with eating disorders often fail to be diagnosed or
have a delayed diagnosis...read more »
Depression undiagnosed in teenagers: Serious bouts of depression can be
undiagnosed in teenagers.
The "normal" moodiness of teenagers can cause severe...read more »
Undiagnosed anxiety disorders related to depression: Patients with depression (see symptoms of depression)
may also have undiagnosed anxiety...read more »
Read more about Misdiagnosis and Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Research Doctors & Specialists
Research related physicians and medical specialists:
Other doctor, physician and specialist research services:
Hospitals & Clinics: Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Research quality ratings and patient safety measures
for medical facilities in specialties related to Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
Hospital & Clinic quality ratings »
Choosing the Best Hospital:
More general information, not necessarily in relation to Obsessive-compulsive disorder,
on hospital performance and surgical care quality:
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Rare Types
Rare types of diseases and disorders in related medical categories:
Latest Treatments for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
See full list of 10
latest treatments for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Evidence Based Medicine Research for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Medical research articles related to Obsessive-compulsive disorder include:
Click here to find more evidence-based articles on the TRIP Database
Prognosis for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Prognosis for Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
Symptoms tend to develop gradually unless they are triggered by a stressful event and patients tend not to acknowledge their symptoms until they become more severe which leads to delayed treatment and a greater establishment of the obsessive-compulsive behaviors in the person's daily routine. Treatment can lead to a good prognosis though treatment is often required on a life-long basis. Complete recovery to the point of no longer requiring treatment is considered uncommon.
A percentage of people (10-20% in some reports) fail to respond to regular, noninvasive treatment and require hospitalization and more drastic treatment measures such as surgery.
Well over half of patients (up to 80% in some reports) with OCD develop depression.
Roughly 10% develop other related conditions such as trichotillomania, anorexia nervosa, bulimia and Tourette's syndrome.
More about prognosis of Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Research about Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Visit our research pages for current research about Obsessive-compulsive disorder treatments.
Clinical Trials for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally
and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.
Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for Obsessive-compulsive disorder include:
See full list of 60
Clinical Trials for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Statistics for Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Broader Related Topics
Types of Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder Message Boards
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User Interactive Forums
Read about other experiences, ask a question about Obsessive-compulsive disorder, or answer someone else's question, on our message boards:
Article Excerpts about Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, involves anxious thoughts or
rituals you feel you can't control. If you have OCD, you may be plagued by
persistent, unwelcome thoughts or images, or by the urgent need to engage
in certain rituals. (Source: excerpt from Anxiety Disorders: NIMH)
Definitions of Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
An anxiety disorder characterized by recurrent, persistent obsessions or compulsions. Obsessions are the intrusive ideas, thoughts, or images that are experienced as senseless or repugnant. Compulsions are repetitive and seemingly purposeful behavior which the individual generally recognizes as senseless and from which the individual does not derive pleasure although it may provide a release from tension.
- (Source - Diseases Database)
Contents for Obsessive-compulsive disorder:
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