Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a serious and disabling problem for many people. Understandably, many people seek out medication to help with this problem, and research is shown that medication can be helpful some people. However, research is also very clear that particular proven forms of psychotherapy work much better than medication for OCD. A newly published review paper provides further evidence that psychotherapy outperforms medication for OCD.
Some background about the paper
Published in 2013 in World Psychiatry, Cuijpers and colleagues collected 67 studies where medication and psychotherapy were directly compared against each other for depression and anxiety-related problems. The researchers conducted what is called a meta-analysis, a way of converting the data from separate studies into a computation that allow for a direct comparison across studies.
The researchers determined that for OCD, psychotherapy is “clearly more efficacious” than medication. Specifically, psychotherapy was found to be more effective than antidepressants, the most well-research pharmacological treatment for OCD.
One caveat
One point I’d like to make clear is that we’re not talking about generic talk therapy but some form of OCD-specific cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT), typically with what is called exposure and response (or ritual) prevention (ERP). Although mild to moderate anxiety and depression may respond to generic talk therapy, OCD generally does not, and usually requires a structured approach such as CBT with ERP.
What this research adds to what we currently know
This study contributes to a body of literature suggesting that psychotherapy is the treatment of choice for OCD. Previous research has found that medication does not interfere with evidence-based psychotherapy for OCD, but neither does it enhance treatment. In sum, although some people with OCD may benefit from medication, particularly if they are also depressed, medication alone for OCD is a substandard treatment. Cognitive behavior therapy with exposure and response/ritual prevention is the gold standard. There is also newer evidence that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), even without ERP, is an effective treatment for OCD.
Don’t take my word for it, though: you can read the Cuijpers and colleagues study yourself here.
Author: Brian Thompson Ph.D.
Brian is a licensed psychologist and Director of the Portland Psychotherapy Anxiety Clinic. His specialties include generalized anxiety, OCD, hair pulling, and skin picking.
