New developments in behaviour therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder

Effective behaviour therapy techniques of exposure and response (or ritual) prevention for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) are based on the principle of habituation. This is a common-sense approach that is simple in conception but not easy to implement and maintain. Controlled trials have proven the short- and long-term effectiveness of behaviour therapies in OCD and meta-analyses suggest that behaviour therapy is at least as effective as potent serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs). A combination of these behavioural and psychopharmacological modalities might represent the optimal treatment for OCD. Here I review behaviour therapy techniques for OCD, the studies supporting its effectiveness and acceptability and problems limiting its wider dissemination. The preliminary results of a computer-administered behaviour therapy programme for OCD, BT STEPS(TM), are also presented.