Dystonic Definition

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

  Definitions and clinical features:

The features of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is the presence of obsessions and compulsions that interfere with the patient's ability to cope with their daily lives.

Obsessions: are unpleasant or painful thoughts, images or impulses that come to mind again and again, despite conscious efforts to stop them. We all become preoccupied with thoughts of special times, or who have experience of running an annoying music again and again by the spirit. These thought processes are different from normal obsessive thoughts, because it can be distracted by thinking or doing something else, and because the thoughts do not interfere with normal operation. In OCD obsessive thoughts that are often harmless. The common themes of thought include violence, sex, contamination and blasphemy. obsessional images can be a violent and bloody that come to mind vivid and over again, and can not be ignored or deleted. An obsessive impulse could be a periodic pulse to hurt someone, usually a person who suffers is not consciously want to hurt. For example, a man could have obsessive impulse to stab his wife, despite not wanting to harm him and trying to find the pulse. It is rare for people to act on impulses obsessive. It is important to distinguish the thoughts of obsessive thought insertion, one of the leading symptoms of schizophrenia, in which the patient believes they are thoughts that are not theirs. In contrast, the obsessive thoughts are still recognized as arising from the patient's mind (vs. ego-dystonic ego-syntonic).

Compulsions: These are the counterparts of behavior, obsessions, with a strong desire to perform an action or a serious complex of actions (openly or not) several times, even if they are regarded as useless. Compulsions can often be resisted for a short period, but can not be relieved by carrying out the compulsive act. Compulsions can take many forms, but the most common are:

• Hand washing and other cleaning behavior
• Count, for example, repeatedly counting objects in the room or avoiding particular the number
• Check, for example, back home again and again to verify that the oven has been switched off or if the door is locked.
• Touch, feel, for example have to touch each wall of each room is entered.
• Arranging objects in lines, patterns, numbers, etc.

ritual complex incorporating several of these compulsive acts can be developed and can be very debilitating (can take up to 12 hours a day!)

The clinical picture No OCD is highly variable. Patients can have obsessions, compulsions alone, or a combination of both. There is a very close relationship with depressive disorders. About 70% have at least one episode of depression at some point in their lives, and both conditions may coexist (comorbidity). Most often, patients with depressive disorders may develop obsessive symptoms without obsessive-compulsive Full Blown. In these cases, the treatment of depressive disorder is usually sufficient to resolve completely obsessive symptoms without other more specific treatments.

Epidemiology:

OCD is relatively common, with a prevalence of 2 to 3%. Unusually for neurotic disorders it is equally common among men and women. It tends to begin in adolescence and sometimes in childhood.

Aetiology

There are many theories regarding the etiology of OCD, but like other mental illnesses, it is multi-factorial and bio-psycho-social

• Biological factors: are likely to be important. Serotonin may play a role in OCD, and drugs that.