Should Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Be Considered an Anxiety Disorder?

People with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) experience considerable anxiety when they attempt to resist compulsions, but does this anxiety drive their obsessions and compulsions? Researchers addressed the question by analyzing data from 26 voxel-based morphometry studies (OCD, 14; panic disorder, 5; post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD], 6; various anxiety disorders, 1) involving 639 patients with anxiety disorders (430 with OCD) and 737 healthy controls.

The researchers controlled for antidepressant use and age. Other medication use and patient sex did not significantly differ among the different anxiety diagnoses. Compared with controls, the patients — regardless of diagnosis — had smaller regional gray matter volumes bilaterally in th…