Assessment of tics and comorbid obsessive-compulsive symptoms

Abstract

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is frequently associated with tic disorders including Tourette syndrome (TS), chronic tic disorder, and transient tic disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). The overlap between conditions is substantial, with 20-38% of children with OCD reporting comorbid tics, and 20-60% of youth with tic disorders meeting diagnostic criteria for OCD (Goodman, Storch, Geffken, & Murphy, 2006; Pauls, Alsobrook, Goodman, Rasmussen, & Leckman, 1995; Swedo, Rapoport, Leonard, Lenane, & Cheslow, 1989). Likewise, 21% of adults with OCD report clinical or subclinical tic disorder symptoms at some point across the lifespan (Richter, Summerfeldt, Antony, & Swinson, 2003), and approximately one-third to one-half of adults with TS will experience OCD or subclinical obsessiv-compulsive symptoms in their lifetime (Bloch et al., 2006; Leckman, Pauls, & Cohen, 1995.