The Relationship Between Clinical Characteristics and Impulsiveness in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Objectives Previous studies have indicated that obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is associated with high levels of impulsiveness. The aim of this study was to assess whether there are differences in clinical correlates with impulsiveness between OCD patients and healthy controls, and whether there is a significant relation between certain obsessive-compulsive symptomatic dimensions and impulsiveness. Methods A group of 45 OCD outpatients and 45 matched healthy controls were interviewed and diagnosed according to DSM-IV criteria. All subjects were assessed by means of the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11), the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAM-A), and the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). Results Compared with healthy controls, OCD patients exhibited significantly higher BIS-11 scores except for with respect to non-planning impulsiveness. The MADRS scores and age at onset in patients with OCD were significantly correlated with BIS-11 total scores. Multiple regression analyses revealed that only age at onset showed an independent positive correlation with impulsiveness. Hoarding was the only dimension significantly associated with impulsiveness. Conclusion These findings suggest that groups of patients with early onset OCD may show some association with impulsiveness, and that impulsiveness may be another distinct clinical feature of hoarding in OCD.