BEHAVIORAL PSYCHOTHERAPY FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS WITH OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER - AN OPEN TRIAL OF A NEW PROTOCOL-DRIVEN TREATMENTPACKAGE

Objective: The authors present an open trial of cognitive-behavioral p sychotherapy for children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive di sorder. Method: The authors developed a treatment manual explicitly de signed to facilitate (1) patient and parental compliance, (2) exportab ility, and (3) empirical evaluation. Successive versions of the manual were used to treat 15 consecutive child and adolescent patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder, most of whom were also treated with med ications. Results: Statistical analyses showed a significant benefit f or treatment immediately posttreatment and at follow-up. Nine patients experienced at least a 50% reduction in symptoms on the Yale-Brown Ob sessive-Compulsive Scale at posttreatment; 6 were asymptomatic on the National Institute of Mental Health Global Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. No patients relapsed at follow-up intervals as long as 18 months. Boo ster behavioral treatment allowed medication discontinuation in 6 pati ents. No patient refused treatment; 2 discontinued prematurely. Conclu sions: Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy, alone or in combination wit h pharmacotherapy, appears to be a safe, acceptable, and effective tre atment for obsessive-compulsive disorder in children and adolescents.