A researcher at Stellenbosch University (SU) is using a research award to investigate a new treatment method that will hopefully help to better control the symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).

Prof Christine Lochner, from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, recently received the Research Award for Established Researchers from the Biological Psychiatry Special Interest Group of the South African Society of Psychiatrists. This enables her to do cutting edge research in the field of OCD.

"OCD is an inhibiting condition with a tremendous negative impact on a person's quality of life. It has a prevalence rate of two to three percent and only about half of the people suffering from this psychiatric condition respond well to treatment," explains Lochner.   

With this particular study, Lochner and her team are investigating the impact of a new treatment method for people with OCD. They use daily cognitive training through a mobile phone App, over a period of eight weeks. The App, called 'C-ya – Curb your addiction and say C-ya to your habits', was developed by Dr Samantha Brooks, a scientist at the University of Cape Town (UCT) and co-researcher on this project done under the auspices of the SU/UCT Medical Research Council's Unit on Anxiety and Stress Disorders.

The aim is to establish if the anticipated impact of the App on working memory can translate to improved control of OCD symptoms. If it can be shown that it is effective, it will be an affordable intervention that can benefit people who cannot afford expensive cognitive behavioural therapy and who do not have access to specialist treatment required for OCD. "The App will then be used either in isolation or in addition to specialist treatment," says Lochner.

A complete diagnostic and clinical interview is done with participants beforehand and a battery of neurological tests is conducted to determine the current level of functioning and limitations. Structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging scans are also done. All these procedures are repeated after eight weeks to determine if any changes took place due to the cognitive training.

"This is why I am so pleased with this award. Not only does it serve as recognition and a reward for the work we are doing in the field of OCD, but it also enabled us to continue with this promising project. There were many deserving candidates for this award, but we desperately needed the funding to continue the study," says Lochner.

"This project allows us to gather a wealth of data on the working of the brain of people with OCD," says Lochner. "We believe that we will be able to deliver a significant contribution to existing knowledge about the workings of the brain, as well as the treatment and quality of life of people with OCD."