Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder: a review of current empirical findings

The aim of this article is to review the literature on aetiology, epidemiology and course, assessment and treatment of the obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD). OCPD is a rather prevalent personality disorder, being one of the most prevalent personality disorders in the general population. OCPD is associated with moderate Axis I and Axis II co-occurrence and functional impairment is stable over time but generally mild. There is some evidence that the economic burden of OCPD may be considerable. Psychological treatment studies on patients with OCPD are rare, consisting of a few case studies and two open studies. Only one randomized controlled study on pharmacotherapy and no controlled study on psychological treatment directly focusing on OCPD as primary complaint have been reported. Finally, future areas of research are discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.