Abstract
Hair pulling disorder (HPD; trichotillomania) is thought to be associated with significant psychiatric comorbidity and functional impairment. However, few methodologically rigorous studies of HPD have been conducted, rendering such conclusions tenuous. The following study examined comorbidity and psychosocial functioning in a well-characterized sample of adults with HPD (N=85) who met DSM-IV criteria, had at least moderate hair pulling severity, and participated in a clinical trial. Results revealed that 38.8% of individuals with HPD had another current psychiatric diagnosis and 78.8% had another lifetime (present and/or past) psychiatric diagnosis. Specifically, HPD showed substantial overlap with depressive, anxiety, addictive, and other body-focused repetitive behavior disorders. The relationships between certain comorbidity patterns, hair pulling severity, current mood and anxiety symptoms, and quality of life were also examined. Results showed that current depressive symptoms were the only predictor of quality of life deficits. Implications of these findings for the conceptualization and treatment of HPD are discussed.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 12-19 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Psychiatry Research |
| Volume | 239 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 30 2016 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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Keywords
- Comorbidity
- Depression
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
- Quality of life
- Trichotillomania
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Psychiatry and Mental health
- Biological Psychiatry
Cite this
Comorbidity and quality of life in adults with hair pulling disorder. / Houghton, David; Maas, Joyce; Twohig, Michael P.; Saunders, Stephen M.; Compton, Scott N.; Neal-Barnett, Angela M.; Franklin, Martin E.; Woods, Douglas W.
In: Psychiatry Research, Vol. 239, 30.05.2016, p. 12-19.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Comorbidity and quality of life in adults with hair pulling disorder
AU - Houghton, David
AU - Maas, Joyce
AU - Twohig, Michael P.
AU - Saunders, Stephen M.
AU - Compton, Scott N.
AU - Neal-Barnett, Angela M.
AU - Franklin, Martin E.
AU - Woods, Douglas W.
PY - 2016/5/30
Y1 - 2016/5/30
N2 - Hair pulling disorder (HPD; trichotillomania) is thought to be associated with significant psychiatric comorbidity and functional impairment. However, few methodologically rigorous studies of HPD have been conducted, rendering such conclusions tenuous. The following study examined comorbidity and psychosocial functioning in a well-characterized sample of adults with HPD (N=85) who met DSM-IV criteria, had at least moderate hair pulling severity, and participated in a clinical trial. Results revealed that 38.8% of individuals with HPD had another current psychiatric diagnosis and 78.8% had another lifetime (present and/or past) psychiatric diagnosis. Specifically, HPD showed substantial overlap with depressive, anxiety, addictive, and other body-focused repetitive behavior disorders. The relationships between certain comorbidity patterns, hair pulling severity, current mood and anxiety symptoms, and quality of life were also examined. Results showed that current depressive symptoms were the only predictor of quality of life deficits. Implications of these findings for the conceptualization and treatment of HPD are discussed.
AB - Hair pulling disorder (HPD; trichotillomania) is thought to be associated with significant psychiatric comorbidity and functional impairment. However, few methodologically rigorous studies of HPD have been conducted, rendering such conclusions tenuous. The following study examined comorbidity and psychosocial functioning in a well-characterized sample of adults with HPD (N=85) who met DSM-IV criteria, had at least moderate hair pulling severity, and participated in a clinical trial. Results revealed that 38.8% of individuals with HPD had another current psychiatric diagnosis and 78.8% had another lifetime (present and/or past) psychiatric diagnosis. Specifically, HPD showed substantial overlap with depressive, anxiety, addictive, and other body-focused repetitive behavior disorders. The relationships between certain comorbidity patterns, hair pulling severity, current mood and anxiety symptoms, and quality of life were also examined. Results showed that current depressive symptoms were the only predictor of quality of life deficits. Implications of these findings for the conceptualization and treatment of HPD are discussed.
KW - Comorbidity
KW - Depression
KW - Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
KW - Quality of life
KW - Trichotillomania
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84959285590&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84959285590&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.psychres.2016.02.063
DO - 10.1016/j.psychres.2016.02.063
M3 - Article
VL - 239
SP - 12
EP - 19
JO - Psychiatry Research
JF - Psychiatry Research
SN - 0165-1781
ER -