Diagnostic biomarkers for obsessive-compulsive disorder: A reasonable quest or ignis fatuus?

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Grant support

We thank the following authors for providing additional data or information not included in some original articles: I. Fradkin; J. Nota; F. Piras and H. Snyder. Dr. Fullana and Dr. Vieta have received support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation integrated into the Plan Nacional de I + D+I and co-financed by the ISCIII-Subdireccion General de Evaluacion and the Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER). Dr Fullana: PI16/00144; PI 19/00272. Dr. Vieta: PI15/00283; PI18/00805. Dr. Fullana has also received support from the Alicia Koplowitz Foundation (AKOPLOWITZ18_002). Dr. Lazaro, Dr. Golberg, Dr. Soriano-Mas, and Dr. Vieta have received support from the Department of Health of the Generalitat de Catalunya (Pla Estrategic de Recerca i Innovacio en Salut, PERIS) (Dr. Lazaro and Dr. Soriano-Mas: SLT002/16249; Dr. Goldberg: SLT002/16/00254; Dr. Vieta; SLT006/17/00357). Dr. Vieta has also received support from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III; the CIBER of Mental Health (CIBERSAM); the Secretaria d'Universitats i Recerca del Departament d'Economia i Coneixement (2017 SGR 1365), and the CERCA Programme.

Analysis of institutional authors

Fullana Rivas, Miquel àngelAuthorFullana MaCorresponding AuthorLopez-Sola CAuthorFortea LAuthorSolanes AAuthorVieta EAuthorLazaro LAuthorRadua JMain author

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Article

Publicated to:Neuroscience And Biobehavioral Reviews. 118 504-513 - 2020-11-01 118(), DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.08.008

Authors: Fullana, Miquel A; Abramovitch, Amitai; Via, Esther; Lopez-Sola, Clara; Goldberg, Ximena; Reina, Nuria; Fortea, Lydia; Solanes, Aleix; Buckley, Matthew J; Ramella-Cravaro, Valentina; Carvalho, Andre F; Tortella-Feliu, Miquel; Vieta, Eduard; Soriano-Mas, Carles; Lazaro, Luisa; Stein, Dan J; Fernandez de la Cruz, Lorena; Mataix-Cols, David; Radua, Joaquim

Affiliations

ASL Città di Torino - Author

ASL Citta Torino, Dept Mental Hlth, Turin, Italy - Author

Autonomous Univ Barcelona, Sch Med, Dept Psychiat & Forens Med, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Bellvitge Univ Hosp, Bellvitge Biomed Res Inst, Dept Psychiat, IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Carlos III Hlth Inst, Ctr Invest Biomed Red Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health - Author

Centro de Investigacion Biomedica en Red de Salud Mental - Author

CIBERSAM, Inst Invest Biomed August Pi & Sunyer IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Ctr Addict & Mental Hlth CAMH, Toronto, ON, Canada - Author

Hosp Clin Barcelona, Inst Neurosci, Adult Psychiat & Psychol Dept, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Hosp Clin Barcelona, Inst Neurosci, Child & Adolescent Psychiat & Psychol Dept, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Hosp St Joan de Deu Barcelona, Child & Adolescent Psychiat & Psychol Dept, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Hospital Clinic Barcelona - Author

Hospital Sant Joan de Déu - Author

Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge - Author

Inst Recerca St Joan de Deu, Child & Adolescent Mental Hlth Res Grp, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu - Author

Karolinska Inst, Ctr Psychiat Res, Dept Clin Neurosci, Stockholm, Sweden - Author

Karolinska Institutet - Author

King's College London - Author

Kings Coll London, Inst Psychiat Psychol & Neurosci, London, England - Author

Stockholm Cty Council, Stockholm Hlth Care Serv, Stockholm, Sweden - Author

Stockholms Ians Landsting - Author

Texas State Univ, Dept Psychol, San Marcos, TX USA - Author

Texas State University - Author

Univ Autonoma Barcelona, Dept Clin & Hlth Psychol, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Univ Autonoma Barcelona, Dept Psychobiol & Methodol Hlth Sci, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Univ Autonoma Barcelona, Neurosci & Mental Hlth Res Area, CIBERSAM,Mental Hlth Dept, Parc Tauli Hosp Univ,Inst Invest & Innovacio Parc, Sabadell, Spain - Author

Univ Balearic Isl, Univ Res Inst Hlth Sci IUNICS, Mallorca, Spain - Author

Univ Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Univ Barcelona, Hosp Clin, Inst Neurosci, Barcelona Bipolar Disorders Program, Barcelona, Spain - Author

Univ Cape Town, Dept Psychiat, Cape Town, South Africa - Author

Univ Toronto, Dept Psychiat, Toronto, ON, Canada - Author

Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona - Author

Universitat de Barcelona - Author

Universitat de les Illes Balears - Author

University of Cape Town - Author

University of Toronto - Author

Abstract

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) has been associated with a wide range of biological and neurocognitive findings, which could assist in the search for biomarkers. We conducted an umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses to assess and grade the strength of the evidence of the association between OCD and several potential diagnostic biomarkers while controlling for several potential biases. Twenty-four systematic reviews and meta-analyses were included, comprising 352 individual studies, more than 10,000 individuals with OCD, and covering 73 potential biomarkers. OCD was significantly associated with several neurocognitive biomarkers, with varying degrees of evidence, ranging from weak to convincing. A number of biochemical, neurophysiological, and neuroimaging biomarkers also showed statistically significant, albeit weak, associations with OCD. Analyses in unmedicated samples (123 studies) weakened the strength of the evidence for most biomarkers or rendered them non-significant. None of the biomarkers seem to have sufficient sensitivity and specificity to become a diagnostic biomarker. A more promising avenue for future biomarker research in OCD might be the prediction of clinical outcomes rather than diagnosis.Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords

anxietyassociationbiomarkerimpairmentmeta-analysismetaanalysismodelobsessive-compulsive disorderpsychiatrypsychopathologyriskrulesBiomarkerBiomarkersHumansMeta-analysisNeuroimagingObsessive-compulsive disorderOxidative stressSystematic reviews as topicUmbrella review

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Neuroscience And Biobehavioral Reviews due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2020, it was in position 3/53, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Behavioral Sciences. Notably, the journal is positioned above the 90th percentile.

From a relative perspective, and based on the normalized impact indicator calculated from World Citations provided by WoS (ESI, Clarivate), it yields a value for the citation normalization relative to the expected citation rate of: 1.7. This indicates that, compared to works in the same discipline and in the same year of publication, it ranks as a work cited above average. (source consulted: ESI Nov 14, 2024)

This information is reinforced by other indicators of the same type, which, although dynamic over time and dependent on the set of average global citations at the time of their calculation, consistently position the work at some point among the top 50% most cited in its field:

Weighted Average of Normalized Impact by the Scopus agency: 1.4 (source consulted: FECYT Feb 2024)
Field Citation Ratio (FCR) from Dimensions: 6.99 (source consulted: Dimensions May 2025)

Specifically, and according to different indexing agencies, this work has accumulated citations as of 2025-05-21, the following number of citations:

WoS: 26
Scopus: 30
Europe PMC: 14
OpenCitations: 28

Impact and social visibility

Leadership analysis of institutional authors

This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: Canada; Italy; South African Republic; Sweden; United Kingdom; United States of America.

There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (Fullana Llinàs, María Neus) and Last Author (Raduà Castaño, Joaquim).