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Executive functioning in body dysmorphic disorder and obsessive–compulsive disorder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 July 2021

Long Long Chen Open the ORCID record for Long Long Chen [Opens in a new window] ,
Oskar Flygare ,
John Wallert ,
Jesper Enander ,
Volen Z. Ivanov ,
Christian Rück  and
Diana Djurfeldt
Long Long Chen*
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden
Oskar Flygare
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden
John Wallert
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden
Jesper Enander
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden
Volen Z. Ivanov
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden
Christian Rück
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden
Diana Djurfeldt
Affiliation:
Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden
*
* Author for correspondence: Long Long Chen Email: Long.Chen@ki.se
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Abstract

Objective

To assess executive functions (EFs) in patients with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) and obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) compared with healthy controls.

Methods

Adults diagnosed with BDD (n = 26) or OCD (n = 29) according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, and healthy controls (n = 28) underwent validated and computerized neuropsychological tests, spatial working memory (SWM), intra–extra-dimensional set shifting (IED), and stop signal task (SST), from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB). Test performance was compared between groups, and correlated with standardized symptom severity of BDD and OCD. Significance level was set to P < .05.

Results

There were no statistically significant between-group differences on key outcome measures in SWM, IED, or SST. There was a weak positive correlation between symptom severity and test errors on SWM and IED in both OCD and BDD groups; increased clinical severity was associated with more errors in these tests. Furthermore, there was a negative correlation between symptom severity and SST in the BDD group.

Conclusions

Patients with BDD or OCD did not differ from healthy control subjects in terms of test performance; however, there were several statistically significant correlations between symptom severity and performance in those with BDD or OCD. More studies on EFs in BDD and OCD are required to elucidate if there are differences in EFs between these two disorders.

Keywords

Obsessive–compulsive disorderbody dysmorphic disorderexecutive functionscognitionneuropsychiatry
Type
Original Research
Information
CNS Spectrums , Volume 28 , Issue 1 , February 2023 , pp. 33 - 40
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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