Kleptomania - Diagnosis and treatment options

Kleptomania - the inability to resist the impulse to steal objects, not for personal use or monetary gain - is currently classified in psychiatric nom enclature as an impulse control disorder. However, some of the principle fe atures of the: disorder, which include repetitive intrusion thoughts. inabi lity to resist the compulsion to perform the thievery and the relief of ten sion following the act, suggest that kleptomania may constitute an obsessiv e-compulsive spectrum disorder. Kleptomania is commonly under-diagnosed and is often accompanied by other p sychiatric conditions, most notably affective, anxiety and eating disorders , and alcohol and substance abuse. Individuals with the disorder are usuall y referred for treatment due to the comorbid psychiatric complaints rather than kleptomanic behaviour per se. Over the past century there has been a shift from psychotherapeutic to psyc hopharmacological interventions for kleptomania. Pharmacological management using selective serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) reuptake: inhibitors (SSRIs) and other antidepressants, mood stabilisers and opioid receptor an tagonists, as adjuvants to cognitive-behavioural therapy, has produced prom ising results.