AO3

• Biological Treatments: Evaluation Points

  • Evidence of effectiveness
  • Cost effective and non-disruptive
  • Severe side effects
• Biological Treatments AO3: Evidence of Effectiveness

  There is various research support that shows that SSRIs reduce symptoms and improve quality of life. Soomro` (2009) reviewed 17 studies that compared SSRIs with placebos and found that SSRIs had better outcomes and that they typically reduce symptoms for 70%. However, other evidence suggests that SSRIs are not the most effective treatment. Skapinaki (2016) reviewed outcome studied and concluded that CBT is more effective than SSRIs.
• Biological Treatments AO3: Cost Effective and Non-Disruptive

  A strength of biological treatments for OCD is that they are cost effective as many dosages of medication can be made in the same time that it takes to conduct a one-on-one talking therapy session. This means that drug therapies are good value for public health organisations. Compared to psychological therapies, drug therapies are non-disruptive to peoples lives as they can take medication until symptoms decline, rather than attending multiple sessions.
• Biological Treatments AO3: Serious Side Effects

  One limitation of drug therapy to treat OCD is that there are serious side effects. A small minority will gain no benefit from drug therapy and actually be negatively affected. Side effects can be long term or short term, such as indigestion and blurred vision. However, clomipramine has more common and severe side effects, such as 1 in 10 experiencing weight gain.