OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of trichotillomania and comorbid psychopathology in nonreferred adolescents. METHOD: Using a questionnaire and interview, 794 Israeli 17-year-olds were screened for current and past hair-pulling and comorbid psychopathology. RESULTS: Eight current or past hair-pullers (5 male, 3 female) were identified, yielding a lifetime prevalence of hair-pulling of 1%. Four subjects reported current hair-pulling (point prevalence of 0.5%). None of these reported alopecia, distress, or tension before pulling; only two reported relief after pulling. Thus, none met the full DSM-III-R criteria for trichotillomania. Four subjects reported past but not current hair-pulling, with bald spots in two cases. Three of the four current hair-pullers had significant obsessive-compulsive symptoms, a significantly elevated rate compared to the entire screened population. Two subjects with obsessive-compulsive disorder also had generalized anxiety disorder and, in one case, chronic simple vocal tics. Hair-pullers did not differ significantly from non-hair-pullers in IQ, physical fitness, and overall competency, or prevalence of other comorbid disorders. CONCLUSIONS: In a community adolescent sample, only 25% of hair-pullers reported resulting bare spots and none endorsed both rising tension and subsequent relief. The prevalence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms was significantly elevated in these nonreferred hair-pullers.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of trichotillomania and comorbid psychopathology in nonreferred adolescents. METHOD: Using a questionnaire and interview, 794 Israeli 17-year-olds were screened for current and past hair-pulling and comorbid psychopathology. RESULTS: Eight current or past hair-pullers (5 male, 3 female) were identified, yielding a lifetime prevalence of hair-pulling of 1%. Four subjects reported current hair-pulling (point prevalence of 0.5%). None of these reported alopecia, distress, or tension before pulling; only two reported relief after pulling. Thus, none met the full DSM-III-R criteria for trichotillomania. Four subjects reported past but not current hair-pulling, with bald spots in two cases. Three of the four current hair-pullers had significant obsessive-compulsive symptoms, a significantly elevated rate compared to the entire screened population. Two subjects with obsessive-compulsive disorder also had generalized anxiety disorder and, in one case, chronic simple vocal tics. Hair-pullers did not differ significantly from non-hair-pullers in IQ, physical fitness, and overall competency, or prevalence of other comorbid disorders. CONCLUSIONS: In a community adolescent sample, only 25% of hair-pullers reported resulting bare spots and none endorsed both rising tension and subsequent relief. The prevalence of obsessive-compulsive symptoms was significantly elevated in these nonreferred hair-pullers.
Authors: Ted Avi Gerstenblith; Ashley Jaramillo-Huff; Tuua Ruutiainen; Paul S Nestadt; Jack F Samuels; Marco A Grados; Bernadette A Cullen; Mark A Riddle; Kung-Yee Liang; Benjamin D Greenberg; Steven A Rasmussen; Scott L Rauch; James T McCracken; John Piacentini; James A Knowles; Gerald Nestadt; O Joseph Bienvenu Journal: Compr Psychiatry Date: 2019-08-31 Impact factor: 3.735
Authors: Michael H Bloch; Kaitlyn E Panza; Jon E Grant; Christopher Pittenger; James F Leckman Journal: J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry Date: 2013-03 Impact factor: 8.829
Authors: Emily J Ricketts; Ivar Snorrason; Michelle Rozenman; Christopher S Colwell; James T McCracken; John Piacentini Journal: J Obsessive Compuls Relat Disord Date: 2017-01-21 Impact factor: 1.677
Authors: David F Tolin; Gretchen J Diefenbach; Christopher A Flessner; Martin E Franklin; Nancy J Keuthen; Phoebe Moore; John Piacentini; Dan J Stein; Douglas W Woods Journal: Child Psychiatry Hum Dev Date: 2008-01-08