A prospective long-term follow-up study of alexithymia in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Rufer, Michael; Ziegler, Anne; Alsleben, Heike; Fricke, Susanne; Ortmann, Jürgen; Brückner, Eva; Hand, Iver; Peter, Helmut

doi:10.1016/j.comppsych.2005.12.004

Cited by 52 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Our finding that baseline alexithymia did not predict outcome of CBGT is in accordance with a study of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder, showing that alexithymia, as measured with the TAS-20, had no negative impact on the outcome of CBT at posttreatment [26] and at 6-year follow-up [27] . In contrast, in a sample of inpatients suffering from somatoform disorder and PD, alexithymia, as assessed with the TAS-26, predicted persistent somatization following multimodal CBT [50] .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 79%

“…Based on the results of previous studies on CBT for obsessive-compulsive disorder [26,27] , we hypothesized that (1) the outcome would not be negatively affected by alexithymia, and (2) CBT with exposure therapy, during which patients were asked to describe precisely the intensity and the different qualities of their emotions, would go along with improvements in the typical feature of alexithymia 'difficulties in identifying and describing feelings'.…”

Section: Impact Of Alexithymia On Psychotherapy Outcomementioning

confidence: 99%

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Impact of Alexithymia on Treatment Outcome: A Naturalistic Study of Short-Term Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy for Panic Disorder

et al. 2010

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Background: It is often suggested in the literature that alexithymic patients are less responsive to psychotherapy than nonalexithymic patients. However, few empirical studies have examined this issue. Furthermore, it is unclear whether or not alexithymia itself may improve during psychotherapy. Methods: Fifty-five consecutive outpatients with panic disorder received short-term cognitive-behavioral group therapy (CBGT) and were followed up 6 months later. Nineteen patients (35%) were on concomitant antidepressant medication. Alexithymia was measured using the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Both completers and intention-to-treat analyses were calculated, taking into consideration the potentially confounding effect of comorbid conditions. Results: Baseline alexithymia did not predict outcome of CBGT, neither at posttreatment nor at follow-up. The presence of comorbid axis I disorders predicted nonresponse at posttreatment but not at follow-up. TAS-20 total scores decreased over time, with the TAS-20 factors 1 (difficulty identifying feelings) and 2 (difficulty describing feelings) decreasing significantly, while factor 3 (externally oriented thinking) remained largely stable. Conclusions: These findings are encouraging for cognitive-behavioral therapists working with patients with alexithymia who suffer from panic disorder: CBGT outcome does not appear to be negatively affected by alexithymia, and some alexithymic characteristics may even be reduced following CBGT. Assessing alexithymia at treatment onset may be useful for individually tailoring therapeutic interventions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 79%

Section: Impact Of Alexithymia On Psychotherapy Outcomementioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Alexithymia on Treatment Outcome: A Naturalistic Study of Short-Term Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy for Panic Disorder

et al. 2010

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“…Alexithymia has been linked to obsessive-compulsive disorders DOI: 10.1159/000492789 (OCD), and greater alexithymia has been found to be associated with a high risk of self-harm or suicide in OCD patients [3]. Moreover, alexithymia has been considered as a stable personality trait rather than a state-dependent phenomenon in OCD patients [4,5]. Difficulty in identifying feelings (DIF) and difficulty describing feelings (DDF) have especially become targets in the psychotherapeutic treatment of obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alexithymia, Ego-Dystonicity, and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms: A Path Modeling Analysis

Shi

Dong

et al. 2018

Psychopathology

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Aims: This cross-sectional study aimed to test the path relations between alexithymia, ego-dystonicity, anxiety, depression and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and healthy individuals. Methods: Fifty-eight patients with OCD (mean age 35.5 years) and 54 healthy participants (mean age 33.5 years) completed an assessment via a structured clinical interview. All of them completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), the Vancouver Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory (VOCI), the Self-Consistency and Congruence Scale (SCCS), the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and the Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS). The data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Results: In the OCD patients, alexithymia (a linear combination of difficulty identifying and describing emotions in the self) was associated with the OC symptoms either with or without the presence of ego-dystonicity (a profile of self-inconsistency and self-stereotype). In the heathy participants, alexithymia was associated with the OC symptoms only through ego-dystonic experiences. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that ego-dystonicity partially affects the association between alexithymia and obsessive-compulsions. Alexithymia and ego-dystonicity have a synergistic effect on the symptoms of OCD. Alexithymia in healthy participants associates to the OC symptoms only through ego-dystonicity. Targeting ego-dystonicity dimensions in psychotherapy would help improve the symptoms of OCD.

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“…According to many authors, alexithymia reflects a disordered affect regulation that increases vulnerability to psychological illness, especially in conflict-afflicted psychosocial situations [7]. Increased prevalence of alexithymic traits were found in patients with mental disorders, such as pathological gambling [8,9], somatoform disorders [10,11,12,13], eating disorders [14,15,16,17], anxiety disorders [18,19,20,21], depression [22,23,24,25], addictive disorders [26,27,28] and obsessive-compulsive disorders [29,30]. There is also evidence for differences between diagnostic groups regarding TAS-20 subscales [31,32].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is Alexithymia Associated with Specific Mental Disorders

Leweke,

Leichsenring,

Kruse

et al. 2011

Psychopathology

170

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Background: Alexithymia is characterized by restrictions in the perception, differentiation and regulation of affects. It is considered to be an important vulnerability factor for the development of mental disorders. Little is known, however, of whether alexithymia is associated with specific mental disorders. Sampling and Methods: Data from 1,461 patients of an outpatient clinic for psychosomatic medicine with various mental disorders (depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, adjustment disorders, somatoform disorders, eating disorders, and psychological and behavioral factors of physical illness) were collected between January 2007 and October 2009. The 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) was administered to study alexithymia. The diagnoses were made following ICD-10 guidelines. Results: In our sample, the total prevalence of alexithymia (TAS-20 ≧61) was 21.36%. The percentage of alexithymic patients was significantly increased in the group of patients with depressive disorders (26.9%) as compared to other diagnostic groups. Using TAS-20 as a continuous measure, multiple hierarchical regression analyses revealed that higher TAS-20 total scores were significantly associated with depressive and anxiety disorders. However, after controlling for the level of depression, the association of anxiety disorders with alexithymia was no longer significant. With regard to TAS-20 subscales, ‘difficulty describing feelings’ (subscale 2) was also significantly related to depressive disorders. Conclusions: According to the results, the prevalence of alexithymia is relatively high in patients with mental disorders. The increased prevalence of highly alexithymic subjects suggests that alexithymia is associated with a higher vulnerability to mental illness. The prevalence of alexithymia was especially increased for depressive disorders. Thus, further evidence supporting the concept of ‘alexithymic depression’ was provided. From a therapeutic perspective, treatments should be developed that take the specific needs of highly alexithymic patients into account.

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A prospective long-term follow-up study of alexithymia in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Cited by 52 publications

References 29 publications

Impact of Alexithymia on Treatment Outcome: A Naturalistic Study of Short-Term Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy for Panic Disorder

Impact of Alexithymia on Treatment Outcome: A Naturalistic Study of Short-Term Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy for Panic Disorder

Alexithymia, Ego-Dystonicity, and Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms: A Path Modeling Analysis

Is Alexithymia Associated with Specific Mental Disorders

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