Traumatic life events in individuals with hoarding symptoms, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and comorbid obsessive-compulsive and hoarding symptoms

•Rates of specific types of traumas were examined in individuals with OCD symptoms, hoarding symptoms, or both.•The temporal association between trauma and symptom onset was examined.•Hoarding severity was positively associated with number of traumas before symptom onset.•Hoarding was also associated with higher rates of physical assault and transportation accidents prior to symptom onset.•Comorbid hoarding and OCD symptoms were associated with higher rates of sexual assault prior to symptom onset.

Individuals with OCD or hoarding symptoms frequently report experiencing traumas and traumatic events may be a risk factor for anxiety and mood disorders; however, little research has compared rates of specific traumas in those with OCD symptoms alone, hoarding symptoms alone, or comorbid OCD and hoarding symptoms. Participants were individuals with elevated OCD symptoms, hoarding symptoms, or both, who completed online questionnaires about types of traumatic events and the temporal association of traumas and symptom onset. Results indicated that hoarding severity was positively associated with the number of traumatic events that occurred prior to symptom onset, supporting the notion of cumulative trauma in hoarding. Those with hoarding alone also had higher rates of physical assault and transportation accidents prior to symptom onset than those with OCD symptoms alone. Finally, those with hoarding and OCD symptoms reported higher rates of sexual assault prior to symptom onset than those with OCD alone. There were no differences between groups on traumatic events after symptom onset. This suggests that there may be an important association between hoarding and certain traumatic events prior to symptom onset.