National Institution for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published draft guidance aimed at helping healthcare professionals identify obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) earlier.
The proposed recommendations advise professionals to consider assessing for OCD or BDD in people with depression, anxiety, autism or ADHD, as well as those seeking cosmetic procedures. According to NICE, symptoms can be overlooked, misunderstood or attributed to another condition, delaying diagnosis and treatment.
For patients seeking cosmetic procedures, the draft guidance recommends that practitioners, including surgeons, dentists and dermatologists, ask structured questions about appearance-related concerns and record their findings. Where responses suggest BDD, the draft recommends referral for specialist assessment rather than proceeding with the procedure at that stage. NICE’s guideline committee noted that cosmetic procedures rarely address the underlying condition and may sometimes worsen symptoms.
Eric Power, interim director of the Centre for Guidelines at NICE, commented, “Our draft recommendations aim to help healthcare professional recognise symptoms earlier, ask the right questions and support people to access appropriate treatment sooner.”