EFFICACIA DELLA TERAPIA COGNITIVO-COMPORTAMENTALE NEL TRATTAMENTO DEL DOC IN COMORBIDITÀ CON PSICOSI.

Objective: The co-occurrence of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in patients with schizophrenia (SCH) or schizo-affective disorder (SAD) is frequent and disabling. Data on the effectiveness of serotonin reuptake inhibitors in patients with SCH or SAD and OCD comorbidity are limited and controversial, and to date no study exploring the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for patients with this comorbid condition has been conducted. The purposes of this open naturalistic study were to examine the adherence to, and the effectiveness of CBT for OCD in patients with stabilized SCH or SAD. Method: Twenty-one consecutive patients with SCH or SAD and OCD comorbidity were enrolled. CBT for OCD was conducted in a naturalistic setting. Primary outcomes were: adherence rate (percentage of patients who did not drop out during the trial), and the OCD remission rate, (Y-BOCS total score < 16). Secondary outcomes were OCD response (a decrease ≥ 25% in the total Y-BOCS score from baseline to 1 year), and improvement (CGI-I score of ≤ 2). An intent-to-treat analysis was conducted. Results: Five patients (23%) dropped out from the study. At one year, 52% (11/21) of the patients were rated as much or very much improved; 33% (7/21) were responders, and 19% (4/21) were remitters. Conclusions: Our findings showed good CBT adherence for SCH/SA patients with OCD comorbidity, and suggest that CBT may be a helpful treatment strategy for OCD in these difficult-to-treat patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]