sciencedirect.com http://www.sciencedirect.

com/science/article/pii/S0303846714000201
Long-term follow-up of bilateral anterior capsulotomy in
patients with refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder
Shikun Zhan
a,
,
Wei Liu
a,
,
Dianyou Li
a
,
Sijian Pan
a
,
Yixin Pan
a
,
Yongchao Li
b
,
Guozhen Lin
b
,
Bomin Sun
a, ,
Show more
Choose an option to locate/access this article:
DOI: 10.1016/j.clineuro.2014.01.009
Get rights and content
Abstract
Background
Obsessive-compulsive disease (OCD) is a severe psychiatric disorder suffers tens of millions of people around
the world. There are many treatment options available, however, still nearly 40% of OCD patients do not respond
very well to the therapeutic methods. For treatment-refractory OCD patients, bilateral anterior capsulotomy is a
potential therapy.
Methods
53 (32 men and 21 women) medically intractable OCD patients who underwent MRI guided bilateral anterior
capsulotomy from 2003 to 2006 were included in this study. Pre- and post-operative Yale-Brown Obsessive-
Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) and Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) scores
were recorded by psychiatrists. FDG-PET was performed pre-operatively and 12 months after the operation to
assess the effect of the operation.
Results
There was a marked difference in FDG-PET findings before and 12 months after the operation. For OCD
symptoms, 20 (37.9%) cases were regarded as OCD symptoms free, 13 (24.5%) cases as significant improved,
8 (15.0%) cases as clinical improved and 12 (22.6%) cases experienced no effects or improvements. There is
also a significant difference in Y-BOCS, HAMD and HAMA scores (two-tailed t-test).
Conclusions
Our study indicates that bilateral capsulotomy is a precise and relatively safe therapy for refractory OCD, which
can improve patients quality of life and restores their social function. There must be strict inclusion criteria for
patients considering of the complications and the irreversibility of this procedure.
Keywords
Copyright 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Copyright 2014 Elsevier B.V. except certain content provided by third parties. ScienceDirect is a registered
trademark of Elsevier B.V.