Clinical characteristics and comorbidity associated with female gender in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a heterogeneous condition characterized by largely variable phenotypic expressions. Previous findings suggested that gender may be a relevant factor in mediating this heterogeneity. The present study aimed at exploring gender differences in a large clinical sample of Italian OCD patients.

Socio-demographic and clinical variables of a sample of 229 consecutive OCD outpatients were included in a common database. Patients were assessed through structured clinical interviews, the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and the Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale.

Female OCD patients were more likely than males to have lifetime psychiatric comorbidities (72.6% vs 56.9%; p < 0.05), poly-comorbidities being twice as high compared to males. The female group also showed a significant later onset of symptoms (63.7% vs 44.8%; p < 0.005) and a higher age at first treatment (30.98 ± 13.1 years vs 27.81 ± 11.3; p < 0.005). Moreover, the female subgroup presented higher rates of cleaning and washing compulsions, compared to the male subgroup (28.7% vs 12.6% in the male group; p < 0.005).

The current study supports the notion that OCD in female gender is frequently a comorbid condition with other specific clinical characteristics compared to male patients. These findings should be considered in epidemiologic and therapeutic perspectives.