Obsessive-compulsive symptoms in adolescents with major depressive disorder: prevalence, clinical correlates, and association with childhood trauma.

backgroundA substantial line of research has demonstrated that obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) often cooccur with major depressive disorder (MDD). Such cooccurrence possibly exacerbates depressive symptoms and leads to a poor prognosis. We explored the rate of OCS in adolescents with MDD as well as the clinical correlates associated with concomitant OCS in adolescent MDD patients, especially childhood trauma.

methodsWe enrolled a total of 190 adolescent patients. General demographic information was collected from all participants; the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression scale (HAMD-17) was used to assess depressive symptoms; the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) was used to assess OCS; and the Adolescent Self-Rating Life Events Check (ASLEC) and Child Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) were used to assess relevant clinical characteristics.

resultsAmong 190 adolescents with depression, 70 (36.8%) had OCS. Significant differences in family relationships, age at onset, ASLEC scores, CTQ scores, and HAMD-17 scores were observed between MDD adolescents with and without OCS. Furthermore, according to the logistic regression analysis, MDD patients who had more severe depressive symptoms, or had previous experiences of childhood trauma, especially emotional abuse, were more probable to have OCS.

conclusionsOur findings emphasize the importance of drawing familial, educational, and societal attention to these influential factors. A number of effective and proactive interventions could be actively pursued to achieve early detection and treatment of OCS with depression.