Calcification of the Pineal Gland and Psychopathology in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Children and Adolescents: A Clinical Case Study

Abstract

While it is generally believed that they result from the interaction of genetic and environmental factors, some cases of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) can be attributed to specific neurological etiologies. Hence, the interest of this article, which discusses the case of a 13-year-old child, who has been experiencing sleep disturbances since early childhood and is seeking treatment for an obsessive syndrome with severe symptoms and a poor therapeutic response. An assessment revealed the presence of pineal gland calcification. Despite the patient being placed on a suitable treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder, their symptoms only improved after the addition of melatonin, resulting in a significant enhancement in both their sleep and obsessive-compulsive symptoms on the Yale-Brown Scale. Thus, this article highlights the role of the pineal gland in melatonin secretion and also discusses the role of this hormone in the occurrence of mental disorders as well as its therapeutic attributes in psychiatry.