Journal of Korean Neuropsychiatric Association  2006;45(2):93-99

Clinical Characteristics and Treatment Strategies in Female Patients with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

Hyun Ju HONG 1 ; Chan Hyung KIM

Affiliations

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Keywords

Female; Obsessive-compulsive disorder; Clinical characteristics; Treatment response

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

Korean

Abstract

This article reviews clinical characteristics, neurobiological aspects and treatment strategies in female patient with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) compared to male. Female with OCD had a later age of onset and different patterns of OCD symptomatology and comorbidity. Female with OCD showed more favorable course and also reported more frequently stressful event in preceding OCD onset. The onset or worsening of OCD was related to female reproductive cycle events, especially at menarche and postpartum. There is a paucity of investigation regarding gender difference in treatment response in OCD. It has been suggested that gender may contribute to the clinical and biological heterogeneity of OCD and also sexually dimorphic pattern of genetic susceptibility to OCD may be present.