Symptom management in OCD : psychotherapy vs pharmacotherapy

Abstract

Overview of the topic: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), is a condition where an individual have recurring unwanted thoughts, ideas and sensations which are obsessions that make the individual feel driven to do something repetitively which are the compulsions. OCD can be found in all age groups. In this dissertation, the effect of Psychotherapy to reduce symptoms that come from OCD compared to pharmacotherapy will be investigated. The research question: In adults with OCD is psychotherapy better at symptom reduction caused by OCD when compared to pharmacotherapy? Method: The key elements of the PICO question that was formed were used as key terms to produce an alternative term. These key terms were used together by the use of Boolean Operators. Limiters were applied to these key terms to narrow down the search results. The combined key terms were searches by using Google Scholar and EBSCO. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) flowchart was used to eliminate the articles which were not relevant to the PICO question. The inclusion and exclusion criteria were used to assess the suitability of the studies. The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) tool was used to critically appraise the literature. Results: A total of five studies were retrieved for analysed. These included four meta-analyses and one systematic review. All meta-analyses and systematic reviews found a significant improvement when psychotherapy was applied. Conclusion: A clear conclusion was not obtained from the evidence collected; it was found out that psychotherapy does reduces symptoms derived from OCD but a comparison of both is more effective. Nonetheless, more research is needed to answer better the PICO question. Implications and recommendations: Increasing knowledge about psychotherapy amongst the Maltese population, improves one’s behaviour and also decreases stigma towards these individuals. Promoting more knowledge to the health care professionals and relatives is needed in Malta. A large sample size must be used for effective and precise results.