Sustained attention in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: a controlled study.

Studies on attentional processes in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have been inconsistent. The present study focused on the question of sustained attention in OCD, using the 'Degraded Stimulus Continuous Performance Test' (DS-CPT) sensitivity index over time. This study included 20 OCD patients and 25 control subjects, comparable in sex, age and educational level. All subjects had a neuropsychiatric structured diagnostic interview, as well as a psychometric battery. The DS-CPT evaluated sustained attention. The sensitivity decrement during DS-CPT was significant in both controls and OCD subjects. Contrary to our expectations, OCD patients did not show a greater decrease in sensitivity over time, compared to controls: thus, OCD patients presented a no more important attention decrease than controls. Controls and OCD subjects became more conservative in their response criteria throughout the DS-CPT test. Comparing OCD with and without pharmacological treatment did not reveal any difference in CPT outcome. Moreover, we observed, in OCD, a positive significant correlation between the Y-BOCS compulsion score and the CPT sensitivity index. A significant negative correlation of the Y-BOCS compulsive score with the CPT false alarm score was also found. In conclusion, OCD patients did not present any disturbance in sustained attention during a task requiring an increased processing load.