A woman comes to the psychiatrist with history of spending a lot of time in washing her hands. She is distressed about it but says that she cannot stop the practice and spends a lot of time on it. This has staed affecting her social life as well. What is the best mode of treatment for her?
Cognitive behavioral therapy
Exposure and response prevention
Systematic desensitization
Pharmacological agents
Ans: B. Exposure and response prevention(Ref Kaplan and Sadock I I /e p406)Here the patient is suffering from OCD.Treatment of choice for OCD:Behaviour therapy:Conducted in both outpatient & inpatient settings.Most effective in compulsions.Preferred & principal approach:Exposure & response prevention.Other methods:Desensitization, thought stopping, flooding, implosion therapy, and aversive conditionin.Require true commitment from patient for improvement.