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Neuroanatomical Model:

Imaging, surgical, and lesion studies suggest that the prefrontal cortex (orbitofrontal and anterior cingulate cortexes), basal ganglia, and thalamus are involved within the pathogenesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). On the idea of those findings several models of OCD are developed, but have had difficulty fully integrating the psychological and neuroanatomical findings of OCD. Recent research within the field of neuroscience on the traditional function of those brain areas demonstrates the role of the orbitofrontal cortex in reward, the anterior cingulate cortex in error detection, the basal ganglia in affecting the edge for activation of motor and behavioral programs, and therefore the prefrontal cortex in storing memories of behavioral sequences (called "structured event complexes" or SECs). The authors propose that the initiation of those SECs are often amid anxiety that's relieved with completion of the SEC, which a deficit during this process could be responsible for many of the symptoms of OCD. Specifically, the anxiety can form the idea of an obsession, and a compulsion are often an effort to receive relief from the anxiety by repeating parts of, or a whole , SEC. The authors discuss empiric support for, and specific experimental predictions of, this model. The authors believe that this model explains the precise symptoms, and integrates the psychology and neuroanatomy of OCD better than previous models.

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