Psychopathology: Biological approach to treating OCD

Question 1

Why type of therapies are used for treating OCD??

Answer 1

Drug therapy and CBT

Question 2

Why is drug therapy used for treating OCD??

Answer 2

It aims to increase serotonin levels

Question 3

What is the drug called that is used to increase serotonin levels??

Answer 3

SSRI
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor

Question 4

How do SSRIs work??

Answer 4

1. Serotonin is sent from pre-synaptic cell to the receptor sites on the post-synaptic neuron
2. Usually, the unabsorbed serotonin is reabsorbed by the sending cell
3. SSRIs stop it from being reabsorbed so there is more serotonin in the synapse to be absorbed by the receiving cell

Question 5

What is the most effective treatment for OCD??

Answer 5

Using drug therapy along with CBT.

SSRIs take 3-4 months of daily use to reduce OCD symptoms so they are better to be paired with CBT (or other relevant drugs)

Question 6

What are the 3 evaluation points for the biological approach to treating OCD??

Answer 6

• Soomro et al (2009)
• Drugs are cost-effective and non-disruptive (takes less effort for drugs than psychotherapy)
• OCD can be biological or environmental

Question 7

What did Soomro et al (2009) do??

Answer 7

Reviewed 17 studies that compared SSRIs to placebos and found that all 17 showed significant better results for SSRIs than placebos

Question 8

Why is ‘OCD can be biological or environmental’ a weakness??

Answer 8

Due to most commonly being known for being biological, a biological treatment makes sense but this treatment may not work for OCD caused by environmental stressors (like trauma)