(September 20, 2011 - Insidermedicine)

Children and adolescents taking medication for the treatment of obsessive compulsive disorder, or OCD, can benefit from cognitive behavior therapy, but they need to receive full CBT therapy, not just instructions on how to use the technique, according to research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Here is some information about OCD:

•    It affects about 1 in 50 people

•    It is an anxiety disorder characterized by recurrent unwanted thoughts or behaviors

•    The repetitive behaviors, such as hand washing, counting, or checking are often performed in an effort to make the unpleasant thoughts go away

Researchers from the Pennsylvania School of Medicine randomly assigned 124 children aged 7 to 17 who were suffering from OCD and benefitting from medication to one of three treatment groups. The first group continued to take their medication as usual. The second group received both medication and 7 sessions over 12 weeks of instruction in using the tools of CBT. The third group also continued to take medication, and they received 14 concurrent sessions of full CBT treatment.

Nearly 70% of those who received both medication and CBT responded to their therapy, in contrast with only 34% of those who took medication and received only instruction in CBT, and 30% of those who only took medication. The investigators calculated that just 3 patients would need to be treated with medication plus CBT instead of medication alone for 1 additional patient to respond to treatment.

Today’s research highlights the importance of making CBT – and not just instruction in the techniques of the therapy – available to all communities so that young people with OCD have treatment options other than just medication.