OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS - A REVIEW

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common psychiatric illness th at occurs across the entire life span, Although most research on OCD p ertains to adults, studies of the disorder in children and adolescents have burgeoned over the last decade, A review of this literature sugg ests that OCD has a bimodal incidence pattern, with one peak of onset at approximately 10 years of age and another during adulthood, and tha t the juvenile and adult forms are equally prevalent. Important simila rities and differences between the juvenile- and adult-onset forms of OCD can be seen: both show the same clinical phenotype, diagnostic nos ology, and dose responsivity, but the early-onset disorder differs in being clearly male preponderant, more highly familial, and associated with a distinct pattern of comorbid psychopathology,, including disrup tive behavior and specific developmental disorders. These findings hav e implications both for clinical management and for future research, w hich could consider age of onset as an important factor in studies of all OCD patients.