ABSTRACT
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) was initially considered to occur only during adolescence or adulthood, but has since been documented as early as 3 years of age. The mean age of onset for individuals who develop OCD prior to adulthood has been estimated at 10 years (Hollingsworth, Tanguay, Grossman, & Pabst, 1980; Swedo, Rapoport, Leonard, Lenane, & Cheslow, 1989). The field to date has generally used the same term, juvenile onset to categorize both child and adolescent onset OCD (Geller et al., 1998). However, increasing evidence suggests that there is an early (prepubertal), pubertal, and late adolescent-adult-onset of OCD and that there may be distinct phenomenologic and risk factors of each subtype. Despite a meaningful common core of symptoms observed across the life span (Rettew, Swedo, Leonard, Lenane, & Rapoport, 1992), there are unique features of early-onset OCD that makes consideration of early presentation different from pubertal or late adolescent-onset, and which may have important implications for treatment.
