Michigan researchers aim to study obsessive compulsive disorder across the lifespan

Two University of Michigan doctors have launched a five-year study of adolescent and adult patients with Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) to better understand the benefits of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is a type of psychotherapy that teaches patients to dismiss their fears as "false alarms."

To do this, they practice resisting compulsive behaviors until the fears stop seeming so real.sFTaylor2 (3)" width="252" height="300" /></a> The doctors will use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to predict how OCD will respond to CBT in both teenagers and adults. FMRI is a "neuroimaging procedure using <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_resonance_imaging">MRI</a> scanners to detect changes in blood flow, which correlate with brain activity," says Stephan Taylor, M.D., co-principal investigator. "If we can identify which brain circuits are changed with CBT, we can design new treatments that specifically target those circuits." Kate Fitzgerald, M.D., the second co-principal Investigator on the project, specializes in pediatric OCD, and in recent work she has shown that the brains of teenagers with OCD mature along a different trajectory. "We know the teenage brain is a changing brain, and if we can influence that change with interventions, such as cognitive training, we can develop new treatments for OCD." OCD is a common psychiatric illness that often emerges in childhood. It is characterized by intrusive thoughts or obsessions and behavioral rituals. Symptoms begin with simple tasks, like hand washing or locking a door, which become laden with fear and anxiety (obsessions) that the task is not done correctly. The intense feeling leads to repeated behaviors or compulsions to reduce the fear and anxiety. Unfortunately, the need to repeat the compulsive behavior, sometimes for hours, is highly disruptive to a person
By revealing how CBT outcomes link to specific changes in the brain, this research will guide new interventions to help more patients. For more information about OCD, visit http://www.psych.med.umich.edu/mental_health/obsessive-compulsive_disorder.asp.Those interested in participating in the OCD research described here may find more information at umclinicalstudies.org/HUM00091368?topics=10166. They can also call 734-936-1323.