Natural recovery in trichotillomania
Natural recovery in trichotillomania
OBJECTIVES: Trichotillomania is characterized by repetitive pulling out of one's hair, leading to distress and/or functional impairment. Long considered a chronic condition if left untreated (albeit with fluctuating intensity), there have been intimations that the disorder may be of limited duration in some people.
METHODS: A sample of 10,169 adults, aged 18-69 years, representative of the general US population, were recruited and screened for current and lifetime trichotillomania. Potential differences in demographic and clinical variables and lifetime comorbidities, between those with natural recovery from trichotillomania, and those with current trichotillomania, were identified using analysis of variance or likelihood-ratio chi-square tests as appropriate. Additional analyses using binary logistic regression were used to control for potential confounding differences between the groups initially identified.
RESULTS: In total, 24.9% of the entire sample of people with lifetime trichotillomania reported that they no longer had symptoms of trichotillomania and had never received therapy or medication treatment for it (i.e. they experienced natural recovery). Those who experienced natural recovery did not differ from those with current trichotillomania in terms of demographic or clinical characteristics, except that they were currently older. Natural recovery was associated with significantly lower rates of related comorbidities: obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, panic disorder, skin picking disorder and tic disorder.
DISCUSSION: These findings from the first epidemiology study examining natural recovery in trichotillomania highlight the importance of screening for and treating such comorbidities in patients with trichotillomania, in order to maximize chance of clinical recovery.
48674211066004
Grant, Jon E
68b74bfc-0910-4325-aa34-24d285abfc19
Chamberlain, Samuel R
8a0e09e6-f51f-4039-9287-88debe8d8b6f
Grant, Jon E
68b74bfc-0910-4325-aa34-24d285abfc19
Chamberlain, Samuel R
8a0e09e6-f51f-4039-9287-88debe8d8b6f
Grant, Jon E and Chamberlain, Samuel R
(2021)
Natural recovery in trichotillomania.
Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, .
(doi:10.1177/00048674211066004).
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Trichotillomania is characterized by repetitive pulling out of one's hair, leading to distress and/or functional impairment. Long considered a chronic condition if left untreated (albeit with fluctuating intensity), there have been intimations that the disorder may be of limited duration in some people.
METHODS: A sample of 10,169 adults, aged 18-69 years, representative of the general US population, were recruited and screened for current and lifetime trichotillomania. Potential differences in demographic and clinical variables and lifetime comorbidities, between those with natural recovery from trichotillomania, and those with current trichotillomania, were identified using analysis of variance or likelihood-ratio chi-square tests as appropriate. Additional analyses using binary logistic regression were used to control for potential confounding differences between the groups initially identified.
RESULTS: In total, 24.9% of the entire sample of people with lifetime trichotillomania reported that they no longer had symptoms of trichotillomania and had never received therapy or medication treatment for it (i.e. they experienced natural recovery). Those who experienced natural recovery did not differ from those with current trichotillomania in terms of demographic or clinical characteristics, except that they were currently older. Natural recovery was associated with significantly lower rates of related comorbidities: obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, panic disorder, skin picking disorder and tic disorder.
DISCUSSION: These findings from the first epidemiology study examining natural recovery in trichotillomania highlight the importance of screening for and treating such comorbidities in patients with trichotillomania, in order to maximize chance of clinical recovery.
Text
TTM natural recovery 10-12-21-clean copy
- Accepted Manuscript
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e-pub ahead of print date: 14 December 2021
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Local EPrints ID: 455109
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/455109
ISSN: 0004-8674
PURE UUID: de6c8bbb-d1bf-452f-9f58-03030cb34e67
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Date deposited: 09 Mar 2022 17:48
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 04:03
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Author:
Jon E Grant
Author:
Samuel R Chamberlain
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