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Insight in obsessive–compulsive disorder: a study of an Italian sample

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

Donatella Marazziti ,
Liliana Dell’Osso ,
Elena Di Nasso ,
Chiara Pfanner ,
Silvio Presta ,
Francesco Mungai  and
Giovanni B. Cassano
Donatella Marazziti*
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, via Roma, 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Liliana Dell’Osso
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, via Roma, 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Elena Di Nasso
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, via Roma, 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Chiara Pfanner
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, via Roma, 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Silvio Presta
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, via Roma, 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Francesco Mungai
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, via Roma, 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
Giovanni B. Cassano
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, via Roma, 67, 56100 Pisa, Italy
*
*E-mail address:dmarazzi@psico.med.unipi.it (D. Marazziti).
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Summary

Insight is a complex phenomenon that can be interpreted according to a dimensional model. Given the controversial data of insight in obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), our study aimed to investigate insight in an Italian sample of patients with OCD by means of the specific item on the Yale–Brown obsessive–compulsive scale (Y-BOCS) and to explore the possible correlations between it and clinical features. One hundred and seventeen out-patients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of OCD and different comorbid psychiatric disorders were included in the study and assessed by means of the Y-BOCS, Hamilton rating scale for depression (HRSD) and the global clinical impression. The results showed that almost 50% of the patients had an excellent level of insight and 15% had a little or no insight. No correlation between levels of insight and clinical features was observed, except for a negative trend with the presence of somatic obsessions. In addition, a trend towards a lower level of insight was observed in those bipolar patients with a positive history of repeated manic or hypomanic episodes. Further studies seem to be necessary in order to establish whether or not OCD patients with poor insight represent a distinct sub-group of patients.

Keywords

Obsessive–compulsive disorderInsightY-BOCSOCD sub-typing
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 17 , Issue 7 , November 2002 , pp. 407 - 410
Copyright
Copyright © Éditions scientifiques et médicales Elsevier SAS 2002

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