06+Obsessive-compulsive+Disorder

OCD is the fourth-most-common mental disorder, and is diagnosed nearly as often as [|asthma] and [|diabetes mellitus].[|[][|1][|]] In the [|United States], one in 50 adults has OCD.[|[][|2][|]] Obsessive–compulsive disorder affects children and adolescents as well as adults. Roughly one third to one half of adults with OCD report a childhood onset of the disorder, suggesting the continuum of anxiety disorders across the life span.[|[][|3][|]] The phrase "obsessive–compulsive" has become part of the English lexicon, and is often used in an informal or caricatured manner to describe someone who is meticulous, [|perfectionistic], absorbed in a cause, or otherwise fixated on something or someone.[|[][|4][|]] Although these signs may be present in OCD, a person who exhibits them does not necessarily have OCD, and may instead have [|obsessive–compulsive //personality// disorder] (OCPD), an [|autism spectrum disorder], or no clinical condition. Multiple [|psychological] and [|biological] factors may be involved in [|causing] obsessive–compulsive [|syndromes].
 * Obsessive–compulsive disorder** (**OCD**) is an [|anxiety disorder] characterized by [|intrusive thoughts] that produce uneasiness, apprehension, fear, or worry, by repetitive behaviors aimed at reducing anxiety, or by a combination of such thoughts (obsessions) and behaviors ([|compulsions]). Symptoms may include repetitive handwashing; extensive [|hoarding]; preoccupation with [|sexual] or aggressive impulses, or with particular religious beliefs; aversion to odd numbers; and nervous habits, such as opening a door and closing it a certain number of times before one enters or leaves a room. These symptoms can be [|alienating] and time-consuming, and often cause severe emotional and financial distress. The acts of those who have OCD may appear [|paranoid] and come across to others as [|psychotic]. However, OCD sufferers generally recognize their thoughts and subsequent actions as irrational, and they may become further distressed by this realization.