A03

• Strength = effectiveness

  • evidence for effectiveness of drug treatments
  • Soomro et al. (2009) reviewed 17 studies comparing SSRIs to placebos
  • SSRIs found to be more effective than placebos in reducing symptoms of OCD up to 3 months after treatment
• Strength = cost-effective and non-disruptive

  • drug therapies require little input from the patient in terms of effort and time compared to CBT which requires patient to attend regular meetings and put considerable thought into tackling their problems
  • drug therapies are also cheaper as require little monitoring and cost much less than psychological treatment
  • = more economical for healthcare system
• Limitation = side effects

  • side effects not always severe but can be enough to stop patient from taking the drug
  • common side effects of SSRIs include nausea, headaches and insomnia
  • when SSRIs aren't effective patient can be prescribed tricyclics which can cause hallucinations and irregular heartbeat
  • Benzodiazepines can cause increased aggressiveness and long term impairment of memory
• Limitation = not a lasting cure

  • Maina et al. (2001) found that patients relapse within a few weeks if medication is stopped
  • Koran et al. (2007) completed a comprehensive review of OCD treatment and suggested although drug therapy may be more commonly used, psychotherapies such as CBT should be implemented first
• Limitation = publication bias

  • evidence of publication bias towards studies and research that demonstrate positive outcomes of antidepressant treatment
  • found that positive results were more likely to be published and studies that weren’t positive often published in a way that conveyed a positive outcome
  • drug companies have a strong interest in the continuing success of psychotherapeutic drugs and these companies often fund much of the research
• What are the strengths of the biological approach to treating OCD?

  1. Effectiveness
  2. Cost-effective and non-disruptive
• What are the limitations of the biological approach to treating OCD?

  1. Side effects
  2. Not a lasting cure
  3. Publication bias