Symptom subtype and quality of life in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Carly M Schwartzman; Christina L Boisseau; Nicholas J Sibrava; Maria C Mancebo; Jane L Eisen; Steven A Rasmussen

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2017.01.025

Symptom subtype and quality of life in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Psychiatry Res. 2017 Mar:249:307-310. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2017.01.025. Epub 2017 Jan 20.

Authors

Carly M Schwartzman¹, Christina L Boisseau², Nicholas J Sibrava³, Maria C Mancebo⁴, Jane L Eisen⁵, Steven A Rasmussen⁶

Affiliations

¹ Butler Hospital, Providence, RI, USA.
² Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA; Butler Hospital, Providence, RI, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].
³ Department of Psychology, Baruch College - The City University of New York, New York, NY, USA.
⁴ Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA; Butler Hospital, Providence, RI, USA.
⁵ Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai St. Luke's/Mount Sinai West, New York, NY, USA.
⁶ Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.

Abstract

Quality of life (QoL) is significantly impaired in OCD across several facets of life, such as social, occupational, and family functioning, subjective sense of well-being, and enjoyment of leisure activities. The present study examined the relationship between 5 symptom subtypes of OCD (contamination, symmetry, hoarding, overresponsibility for harm, and taboo) and QoL. Participants were 325 adults with OCD enrolled in the Brown Longitudinal Obsessive Compulsive Study. Hierarchical linear regression analyses indicated hoarding, contamination, symmetry, and overresponsibility for harm were associated with impairment in household functioning, enjoyment of leisure activities, social relationships, and physical health. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords: Functioning; Impairment; Severity.

MeSH terms

Adult
Female
Humans
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Middle Aged
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / diagnosis*
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / psychology*
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales*
Quality of Life / psychology*

Grants and funding

R01 MH060218/MH/NIMH NIH HHS/United States