Neurobiological underpinnings of obsessive compulsive disorder and schizophrenia: Explanations for disability and severity.

摘要

In the present issue of this journal a paper examines the family burden, quality of life and disability in obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD}. Gururaj et al., demonstrate in a study of inpatients with OCD similar rates of disability and family burden in comparison to those with schizophrenia. The authors are commended for detailed examination of the impact of OCD on the family that has not been done extensively in the past.Although the study is limited by the fact that the sample includes only inpatients, this paper is still important because it shows that in severe cases of OCD, the level of dysfunction is significant. Previous work by Kessler et al., has shown that in the US general population OCD has a high level of impairment and this seems to be higher than other anxiety disorders. Further study of the impact of OCD on family burden and disability is required utilizing random samples to reduce the selection bias of treatment-seeking samples.