The causes of obsessive-compulsive disorder
The causes of brain dysfunction leading to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) are still unknown. There is a genetic predisposition, i.e. an increased risk of developing the disease for 1st-degree relatives of a patient. This risk is estimated at 8%, compared with 2% in the general population, but we still do not know all the genetic variants associated with these disorders. The hypothesis of an autoimmune mechanism in certain early forms of the disease (inflammatory reaction directed against a component of the brain) has been put forward but has not yet been proven.