Memory Deficits in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder-Changes over the Course of Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy

A large body of studies demonstrates memory dysfunction in patients with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Few trials have only equivocally investigated whether this cognitive dysfunction can be improved by treatment. This study aimed to examine the effect of Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy (CBT) on symptom severity and on verbal and non-verbal memory deficits in patients with OCD as an adjunct to pharmacotherapy. Thirty-five OCD patients were compared with thirty-two controls, matched on age, education and diagnosis, on Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) measuring severity of OCD and Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT) and Complex Figure Test (CFT) assessing the verbal and non-verbal memory respectively at the pre-, middle- and post-treatment assessment.OCD patients showed significantly reduced symptoms after completion of their CBT sessions and their memory dysfunctions also ameliorated in the course of treatment. This study indicates that CBT is an effective treatment with those patients who exhibited significant memory deficits and who were severely affected at the beginning of treatment.