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Although there is no evidence of any specific genes in the occurrence of the disorder among children, there is considerable research which suggests that the disorder may be inherited from the genes of close relatives. The disorder is believed to be running in families with a history of the disorder. In many cases, the disorder has been associated with injury of the brain and postencephalitic states along with other disorders such as the basal ganglia disorders namely the tics and Tourette syndrome (McGuire, 1995). Studies of images have revealed in patients with the disorder, there were obvious irregularities of the structural as well as the functional basal ganglia, making obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) the first psychiatric disorder where the combined result of drugs and psychiatric therapy have successfully reversed the functional metabolic changes (Schwartz et al., 1996). The activities undertaken by the affected patients in order to achieve perfection have invited numerous psychodynamic explanations and analysis. There is however growing evidence that the disorder is related to the brain and its functional deformities.
Psychodynamic causes of OCD in Children
According to the Psychodynamic theory, Freud categorized the obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) as a psychoneurosis. He stated that the prime cause for the disease was due to one or many problems in the development of the child. Freud did agree that inheritance or heredity could play a potential role in the disease, but firmly believed in the theory of infantile sexuality, where the child passes through several oral, anal and oedipal sexual stages in the early developmental years. Freud stated that if the child does not advance to each of the stages in a successful manner, difficulties are most probable.
Biological Causes of OCD
Recent studies and research point to biological causes for the occurrence of Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) among children. The PET scans of the Brain have shown the occurrence of certain abnormalities of the sub-orbital cortex and the basal ganglia of the brain, which are the lower or base portions of the brain. Some cases of the disorder is also known to be associated with the Tourette disorder which is typified by numerous convulsions or tics. Children suffering from obsessive compulsion disorder may also have the attention deficit disorder. Recent research has also identified the role of certain bacteria in the occurrence of the disorder among children. The bacteria are identified as the B-hemolytic streptococcus, which produces the PANDAs syndrome in children. The bacterial antibodies may attack several sections of the brain to produce the disorder.
OCD Associated Disorders
There are several other disorders which are known to be associated with the obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) in children. However, the Tourette disorder is more likely to be found in boys who develop the obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) at a relatively younger age. The identification of both the distinct disorders is crucial because they require different treatments. Research has indicated that the children and adolescents with the obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) have a greater likelihood of developing the attention deficit disorder.
There are some other anxiety disorders which depict similarity to the obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) in children. These are termed as the obsessive compulsive spectrum disorders and they include symptoms of children pulling and twirling the hair, or the notion that one or more of their body parts are disfigured or unattractive. They may also include the symptoms of biting the nails. The researchers have not been able to exactly pin-point the true relationship between the two spectrum disorders commonly found in children.