Hoarding Disorder Case Study

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CRITERIA FOR DIAGNOSIS Among the criterion listed in the Diagnostic Manual to diagnose a client with Hoarding Disorder is the presence of the 'essential feature' of - 'Persistent difficulty discarding or parting with possessions, regardless of their actual value.' (DSM –V et al., pp. 247-251) This difficulty in parting with items may cause distress, and the accumulation of possessions to 'congest and clutter the active living areas', as well as significantly impair the individual's social, occupational or other important areas of functioning. The criteria also prescribe that it not be ‘attributable to another medical condition and is not better explained by the symptoms of another mental disorder.' Thus there is provided a fairly straightforward criterion for diagnosis of this disorder. The Diagnostic Manual notes, under the Comorbidity section for Hoarding Disorder,: "Approximately 75% of individuals with Hoarding Disorder have a comorbid mood or anxiety disorder). The most common comorbid conditions are major depressive disorder (up to 50% of cases), social anxiety disorder (social phobia), and generalized anxiety disorder (Pertusa et al., 2008). Approximately 20% of individuals with Hoarding Disorder also have symptoms that meet diagnostic criteria for OCD (Frost et al., 2011)." The interest lies in this last statement presented there: “ These comorbidities may often be the main …show more content…

In the second study, using an independent nonclinical sample, cognitive variables related to OCD were distinct from hoarding-specific cognitions, and not predictive of hoarding symptoms. These results add to a growing body of evidence suggesting that hoarding is not a symptom or manifestation of OCD." (Wheaton, Abramowitz, Fabricant, Berman, & Franklin, 2011, pp.

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