OCD In Athletes

The emergence of sports medicine as a subspecialty and the growing coverage of elite athletics in the media like at the Olympics has put a spotlight on these athletes, fair or unfair, as role models. Until recently, the mental health and mindset of athletes has been ignored and physicians are often biased towards athletes, almost assuming they are more mentally fit. But we are learning more about how athletes think and feel and what they deal with, particularly as they move from recreational up to more elite level programs.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a debilitating, treatable illness affecting 2.3% of adults but competitive athletes’ traits, like overresponsibility, perfectionism, and secrecy, can mask OCD identification. Many athlete’s have calorie obsession, body hyperfocus, superstitions, and rituals and a study published by the Journal of Psychiatry back in 2016 revealed the prevalence of OCD in Division 1 athletes.

What was most interesting about the results was that the 269 athletes studied had denied OCD based on a review of their medical records, but as the study progressed nearly 35% of participants endorsed obsessive-compulsive symptoms:

• 16.7% (N=45) screened positive for OCD

• 5.2% (N=14) met full OCD criteria

• Half of them reported more than five symptom types, like hoarding, ordering, and checking as the most common

• All-conference athletes reported fewer OCD symptoms and screened positive less frequently for OCD compared with their peers

The study was published in January 2017 - authors included Lisa Cromer, PhD, Emily Kaier, MA, Joanne Davis, PhD, Kathleen Strunk, APRN, S. Evelyn Stewart, MD.