Acute obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Abstract

Objectives. Posttraumatic obsessions have been reported in a few studies and case series. However, as the patients described were chronic, and the onset of their posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms was dated some time previously, this hampers interpretation of the temporal, biological and psychological relationship of OCD following traumatic events. In the current paper we describe the emergence of posttraumatic obsessions a short time following the exposure to a traumatic event. Methods. The emergence of posttraumatic obsessions, a few months after exposure to trauma, is described for five veterans. All the veterans participated in combat during the summer of 2006 (in the Second Lebanon War). Results. For all cases, OCD symptoms were initially related to the trauma but later became generalized and independent. Conclusions. The course of the symptoms suggests a potential environmental role in the development of OCD following an exposure to a traumatic event. These observations suggest a biological linkage between exposure to trauma and OCD.