Obsessive-compulsive disorder or OCD is a psychological pathology that is characterized by the presence of obsessions, which are recurring and intrusive thoughts or images that occur without any control, and that can seriously affect the quality of life of the person. suffers from it.
In addition to this, compulsions occur, which are actions (behavioral or mental) that the person feels they must do in order to silence the obsessions (also called “rituals”). That is, compulsions are carried out to reduce the anxiety generated by obsessions.
This condition described can affect the person to the point of being disabling. But how is OCD evaluated? We’ll talk about it.
“OCD is like having mental hiccups. Normally, we can function despite the hiccups, but we are exhausted trying to carry on as if it did not exist,” Sheila Cavanaugh.
Evaluation of OCD in adults
Before applying the instruments corresponding to the evaluation of OCD, the specialist must determine if the person meets the parameters established in the (DSM-5) of the American Psychiatric Association. (2014).
Once this evaluation has been carried out, the clinical assessment is carried out, in which interviews that are already structured for this purpose or the application of some tests can be used.
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Evaluation of OCD in adolescents
The evaluation of OCD is very similar to that of adults. It mainly requires an interview in which the symptoms related to OCD are discussed from the adolescent’s own experiences.
This interview can occur naturally and fluidly or through the use of established instruments.
What do I need for my OCD evaluation?
The evaluation of OCD does not require any special preparation. The person in charge of carrying out the assessment will ask some questions, and may apply some instruments, which are simply a series of questions that you must answer.
It is advisable to be as honest as possible with the answers so that the specialist can carry out a complete assessment and thus determine the approach and treatment to follow.
Interviews to evaluate OCD
There are some structured interviews that allow the assessment of the patient in case of suspected OCD, which are specifically designed to determine the presence of related symptoms and/or the degree of discomfort that they cause in the daily life of the person who suffers from them.
These structured interviews include:
Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Also known as CIDI, which stands for Composite International Diagnostic Interview, it is one of the most used instruments to evaluate OCD because it is very complete. It was created by the World Health Organization.
International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Also known as MINI (International Neuropsychiatric Interview), it is one of the most applied interviews, mainly in the evaluation of adolescents, since it is a simple interview that takes very little time compared to others.
Tests to evaluate OCD
Some of the most used tests to evaluate the presence of obsessions and/or compulsions, according to psychological evaluation reference manuals, as well as one by Berrío and Restrepo (2017), are:
Behavioral Avoidance Test for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Behavioral Avoidance Test for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (BAT) is a scale that is a little different from the previous ones, as it is based on the observation of the behaviors of the person evaluated when faced with tasks that are related to their compulsions and obsessions.
Yale-Brown Obsession-Compulsion Scale. Or Y-BOCS for its acronym in English (Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale). It is one of the most complete assessment instruments for OCD that addresses not only the presence of symptoms, but also the discomfort they produce and their severity.
Overvalued Ideas Scale. Also known as Overvalued Ideas Scale (OVI). It evaluates the overvalued ideas and behaviors associated with OCD that have occurred in the patient within a reference time frame of one week prior to the assessment.
It is important to highlight that, according to specialist research, the CY-BOCSASD scale is an instrument that can be used with high efficiency to detect compulsive symptoms that could indicate the presence of OCD in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).
Self-applying instruments
Other tests that are frequently used to determine the presence of obsessions and/or compulsions are self-administered instruments that, as their name indicates, do not require an expert to administer, since they are scales that are answered directly by the patient. .
It is important to understand that although they can be administered by the patient themselves, their review and diagnosis only corresponds to mental health specialists. Among these instruments are:
- Self-Monitoring.
- Thought Control Questionnaire -TCQ- (Thought Control Questionnaire).
- Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire -OBQ- (Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire).
- Responsibility Interpretations Questionnaire -RIQ- (Responsibility Interpretations Questionnaire).
- Cognitive Intrusions Questionnaire -CIQ- Cognitive Intrusions Questionnaire).
- Disruptive Thoughts Questionnaire – ITQ- (The Intrusive Thoughts Questionnaire).
- Symmetry, Ordering and Arranging Questionnaire -SOAQ – (Symmetry, Ordering and Arranging Questionnaire).
- Treatment Compliance Questionnaire -TAS-P- (Treatment Adherence Survey–Patient version).
- Family Accommodation Scale for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder -FAS- (Family Accommodation Scale for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder).
- Scale of Attitude towards Responsibility -RAS- (Responsibility Attitude Scale).
- Thought-Action Fusion Scale -TAFS-
- Dimensional Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms Scale -DOCS- (Dimensional Obsessive-Compulsive Scale).
- Beck Anxiety Inventory -BAI- (Beck Anxiety Inventory).
- Accumulation Cognitions Inventory -SCI- (Saving Cognitions Inventory).
- Inventory of Compulsions, Obsessions and Pathological Impulses -SCOPI- (Schedule of Compulsions, Obsessions and Pathological Impulses).
- Inventory of Obsessive Beliefs -ICO-.
- Inventory of Beliefs Related to Obsessions -IBRO- (Inventory of Beliefs Related to Obsessions).
- Interpretation of Intrusions Inventory, III.
- Leyton Obsession Inventory for children -LOICV-.
- Padua Inventory -IP- (Padua Inventory).
- Maudsley Obsession-Compulsive Inventory -MOCI- (Maudsley Obsessional Compulsive Inventory).
- Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory -OCI- (Obsessive Compulsive Inventory).
- Clark and Beck Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory -CBOCI- (Clark-Beck Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory).
- Accumulation Inventory – Revised -SI-R- (The Savings Inventory-Revised).
- List of obsessive thoughts -OTC-.
If you think that you or someone close to you may have OCD, don’t hesitate to seek professional help; qualified people for the diagnosis, approach and treatment of this psychopathology. OCD is treatable, but before treatment, an accurate and reliable diagnosis must be made.
“OCD is like having a bully stuck inside your head and no one else can see it,” Krissy McDermott.
Reference:
- American Psychiatric Association. (2014). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-5 (5th ed.). Madrid: Panamericana Medical Editorial.
- Berrío García, N. and Luciano Restrepo, D. (2017). Assessment instruments for obsessive-compulsive disorder: review. Poiésis Magazine, (32), 101-115.