Prevalence and Associated Factors of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Egyptian Adolescents

Background: Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a burdensome disorder which is increasingly becoming the focus of interest in adolescent psychiatry due to its impact on the quality of life. Objective: to assess the prevalence and associated factors of obsessivecompulsive disorder in Egyptian adolescents. Method: A nested case control study (cross sectional study followed by case control study) was conducted on 1574 students from Menoufia governorate, Egypt. The participants were selected from secondary schools using multistage random sample. OCD was diagnosed using Yale-Brown ObsessiveCompulsive Scale. Arabic version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV was used to measure intelligence and cognitive ability in cases with OCD. Results: The prevalence of OCD was 3.24%. There was a statistically significant difference between OCD cases and control, being higher in urban areas (OR 2.43, 95% CI 1.09–5.43), high socioeconomic standard (SES) (OR 2.95, 95% CI 1.24–7.06), positive family history (OR 4.40, 95% CI 1.91–10.11) and the absence of close friend (OR 2.22, 95% CI 1.00–4.91). There was non-significant statistical difference between OCD cases and control regarding total IQ score and verbal IQ, but the performance IQ (PIQ) showed significant difference between the two groups being lower in OCD cases. On logistic regression, the predictors for OCD were high SES, positive family history, absence of close friend and low PIQ. Conclusion: OCD was found to be prevalent among adolescents. Urban residence, high SES, positive family history, the absence of close friend and low PIQ were significantly associated with OCD.