Treatment of OCD - Paper 3 PDF

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H.ATHIKESHANI – TEAM BOSSKU PSYCHOLOGY & ABNORMALITY – PAPER 3 OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE DISORDER (OCD) 2(a) Describe the treatment and management of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. [8] There are 3 forms of treatment and management of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (herein addressed as OCD) which are biomedical and psychological therapies. Biomedical therapies for OCD uses Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs). These medications are selective in the sense that they work on the neutrotransmitter serotonin alone. SSRIs act on the neurotransmitter serotonin to stop it being reabsorbed and broken down once it has crossed a synapse in the brain. This increases the level of serotonin in the brain which then lessens the anxiety experienced by the patient and therefore they do not need to engage in OCD behaviours such as frequent handwashing in order to relieve their anxiety. There are two types of psychological therapies which are; cognitive and; exposure and response prevention. Cognitive therapy was used by Lovell et all in their study where they used a randomised control trial to compare the effectiveness of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) delivered by telephone with the same therapy offered face to face in those with OCD. 72 participants tool part and 10 weekly sessions of therapy either delivered by telephone or face-to-face. Changes in participants’ well-being were measured using the Yale Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), Beck Depression Inventoy and a client satisfaction questionnaire. At 6 months post-treatment, the change in Y-BOCS scores prior to therapy and after therapy showed significant improvement in symptoms for both telephone and face to face CBT group. Lovell et al concluded that both face to face and telephone treatment are both equally effective. Another form of psychological therapy is the exposure and response prevention (ERP) used by Lehmkuhl et al who researched the application of this form of treatment in a case study with a 12 year old boy referred to as Jason who had both OCD and autism. The boy had 10, 50 minute sessions of CBT over 16 weeks. Some of the ERP techniques were modified to meet Jason’s specific autism needs. Jason first identified feelings of distress and with the help of the therapist, learned coping statements for when he felt anxious. The next step involved exposing Jason to stimuli which he felt were contaminated and produced feelings of anxiety or disgust. These includes common objects such as door handles and elevator buttons. The exposure involved Jason being asked to touch these items and repeatedly do so until he became accustomed to it and his anxiety levels dropped. Exposures became increasingly difficult so that Jason was engaging in behaviours that held increasing anxiety for him. In between sessions, he practised this exposure through specific tasks in his normal environment, handing out papers in a classroom or using contaminated items at home. After completing the therapy, Jason’s Y-BOCS scores dropped from 18 to 3. At a 3 month follow up, his score remained low and Jason as well as his parents reported an improvement in his OCD symptoms and his participation in school and social activities....