Investigation of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Patients With Elbow Epicondylitis

This study will compare obsessive-compulsive symptoms in adults with medial and/or lateral elbow epicondylitis (pain and tenderness on the inner and/or outer side of the elbow). The study will include 90 participants in two groups of 45. One group will have no identifiable history of mechanical loading associated with their elbow condition. The other group will have a history of activities that place repeated strain on the elbow, such as manual work, sports, or caregiving. Group assignment will be based on medical history and clinical assessment, rather than random allocation. Each participant will complete the Turkish self-report Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale and the 37-item Turkish Maudsley Obsessional Compulsive Inventory once, at the study visit. The main outcome will be the Yale-Brown total score. The Maudsley total score will be a secondary outcome. The study will assess symptoms, not establish a diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder. No treatment will be assigned as part of the study, and no follow-up visits are planned.

Inclusion Criteria: * Age 18 years or older. * Clinically diagnosed medial and/or lateral elbow epicondylitis, based on tenderness on palpation over the medial epicondyle and/or the origin of the extensor carpi radialis brevis at the lateral epicondyle. * Provision of written informed consent before study assessments. * For the group without identifiable mechanical loading: no identifiable history of activities associated with mechanical loading of the affected elbow, based on participant history and clinical assessment. * For the group with identifiable mechanical loading: a history of associated mechanical loading through activities such as manual work, sports, or caregiving, based on participant history and clinical assessment. * No minimum symptom duration is required. Exclusion Criteria: * History of elbow trauma. * History of humerus, radius, or ulna fracture in the affected upper extremity. * Known psychiatric disorder, including obsessive-compulsive disorder. * Receipt of psychiatric treatment within the preceding six months. * Diabetes mellitus. * Neurological disease, such as epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, or hemiplegia.