Family accommodation in obsessive-compulsive disorder: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

Family accommodation might play a crucial role in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Previous systematic reviews on family accommodation in OCD have focused on specific populations or variables or are outdated. We conducted a preregistered systematic review and meta-analysis on family accommodation in adults, children, and adolescents with OCD (CRD42021264461). We searched PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science using the keywords "family accommodation" and "obsessive-compulsive disorder. One hundred-eight studies involving 8928 individuals with OCD were included. Our results indicate that levels of family accommodation in OCD are moderate, that there is a significant positive correlation between family accommodation and OCD severity (r = 0.42), that baseline family accommodation does not predict pre- to post-treatment change in OCD severity (g = -0.03), and that family accommodation decreases as a result of both individual and family-focused cognitive behavioral therapy for OCD (g = 2.00 and g = 1.17, respectively). Our findings highlight the relevance of family accommodation in OCD and may help guide assessment and treatment.

The Benefits of Dog-Assisted Therapy as Complementary Treatment in a Children's Mental Health Day Hospital.

Dog-assisted therapy (DAT) has shown benefits in people with mental health disorders. A child psychiatric day hospital would be a suitable setting to implement DAT and evaluate the benefits in a pediatric population. METHODS: Mixed methods research in a naturalistic setting was considered in this pre-post quantitative study including 23 children under 13 treated in a day hospital over 2 years. Quantitative analysis included the number of emotional and behavioral outbursts and attendance rate and self-control and social impairment questionnaires completed by family members and therapists. In the qualitative study, the experiences of 12 mental health professionals involved in DAT were documented through semi-structured interviews. RESULTS: On DAT days, there were fewer emotional and behavioral outbursts and higher attendance. Significant differences were obtained between pre- and post-test scores on the SCRS and the SRS-2 completed by the therapists, while no significant differences were obtained on the questionnaires completed by the parents. Observations based on the qualitative study were as follows: (1) DAT improves emotional self-regulation; (2) DAT could facilitate the work of therapists in day hospitals; (3) health professionals displayed uncertainty due to a lack of familiarity with DAT. CONCLUSIONS: DAT improved emotional self-regulation, attendance rate and self-control and social response in children with mental disorders attending a day hospital.