Obsessive compulsive disorder: is it a problem of complex motor programming?

44 subjects with Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and 40 normals were compared using an experimental paradigm involving recording of the bereitschaftspotential. A decreased onset latency and increased amplitude was found in the OCD sample as compared to normals. A neurophysiological substrate for the bereitschaftspotential has been proposed. The implications of these findings in OCD as compared to Gilles de la Tourette syndrome, and for a focal neuro-physiological dysfunction have also been discussed. The findings of this study implicate a dysfunction in complex motor programming in OCD, with the possibility of this dysfunction being in the prefrontal area.