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Cognitive
behavioural therapy should be first therapy for obsessive-compulsive
disorder, guidelines urge
November
29, 2005
Cognitive
behavioural therapy should be a first-line intervention for people
diagnosed with mild to moderate obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD),
national clinical guidelines have urged.
The guidelines on OCD, issued by
the department of health’s National Institute for Health and
Clinical Excellence, also make recommendations as to when drug treatments
– such as selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors - should
be used for people diagnosed with OCD.
On the launch of the guidelines this month, Professor Mark Freeston,
chair of the guideline development group and professor of clinical
psychology at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne said: “The
World Health Organisation rank OCD in the top 10 of the most disabling
illnesses by lost income and decreased quality of life.
"Despite
this we know many people with OCD don’t come forward for treatment
for many years, often because of the stigma attached to the condition.
"Because
people may not spontaneously talk about their difficulties, health
professionals need to be better at asking the right questions and
offering the right treatments.
"Accurate
and early diagnosis, as well as effective treatment, can make a
real difference.”
Read for
yourself:
The National Institute for Health
and Clinical Excellence's clinical guidelines on obsessive-compulsive
disorder (pdf)
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