Impulsiveness in obsessive-compulsive disorder: results from a family study

Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2007 Jan;115(1):41-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2006.00835.x.

Abstract

Objective: Although obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is usually conceptualized as an anxiety disorder some studies suggested it to be a deficit of impulse control. The purpose of this study was to assess impulsiveness in OCD families and compare it to control families.

Method: Seventy cases and their 139 relatives were compared with 70 controls and their 134 relatives from a German family study on OCD (German Epidemiologic Network for OCD Studies). All subjects were interviewed and diagnosed according DSM-IV criteria and were administered the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS) and PADUA-Inventory to assess obsessive-compulsive symptoms.

Results: OCD subjects had significantly higher scores of cognitive impulsiveness. However, first-degree relatives of OCD cases and of controls had comparable BIS-11 scores. Significant associations of aggressive obsessions and checking with cognitive impulsiveness were found.

Conclusion: OCD is a severe mental disorder that is characterized by a lack of cognitive inhibition. However, impulsiveness does not represent a familial trait in families of OCD subjects.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • Aged
  • Comorbidity
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
  • Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders / diagnosis
  • Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders / epidemiology
  • Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders / genetics*
  • Female
  • Germany
  • Humans
  • Inhibition, Psychological
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / diagnosis
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / epidemiology
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / genetics*
  • Personality Inventory
  • Phenotype
  • Sex Factors
  • Statistics as Topic