Insight in body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) relative to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and psychotic disorders: Revisiting this issue in light of DSM-5.

Abstract

In DSM-5, body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) was reclassified under the obsessive-compulsive and related disorders (OCRDs), but little is known about the nature of BDD beliefs. This study aimed to compare level of insight in BDD and consider related implications for DSM-5 classification. Participants were 27 BDD, 19 obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and 20 psychosis (SZ) participants as well as 42 non-clinical controls (NC), who completed the Brown Assessment of Beliefs Scale (BABS) and Peters Delusions Inventory (PDI). For total (and most individual) BABS items, BDD and SZ participants scored significantly higher than OCD and NC participants. On the PDI, there were significant group differences in number of questions endorsed, with clinical groups scoring significantly higher than the NC group on dimensions of distress and preoccupation, but not conviction. These findings suggest appearance-related concerns in BDD somewhat resemble delusions seen in psychosis (and not OCD), and convey important nosological and therapeutic implications.