BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION / October 1999 McKay / BODY DYSMORPHIC DISORDER MAINTENANCE Recent research has suggested that body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is part of the obsessive- compulsive spectrum of disorders. As such, it has been hypothesized that these disorders respond in a similar manner to obsessive-compulsive disorder when behavioral interventions are used. A continuation of follow-up was conducted with a group of patients with BDD following treatment. Ten patients completed an intensive behavioral therapy program and either partici- pated in a 6-month maintenance program or served as controls. At 12-, 18-, and 24-month follow-up assessments, patients participating in the maintenance program were more effective at managing limited symptom return and had significantly lower anxiety and depression. Both groups remained improved for acute symptomatology and behavioral avoidance. The results suggest that maintenance programs following behavioral treatment are effective in preventing symptom relapse and assist in patient self-management of lapses typically associated with BDD. Two-Year Follow-Up of Behavioral Treatment and Maintenance for Body Dysmorphic Disorder DEAN MCKAY Fordham University Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is characterized by excessive pre- occupation with a real or imagined bodily defect and resultant distress (such as depression, anxiety, and behavioral avoidance). Persons iden- tified with BDD lack diagnoses that could be attributed to other psy- chiatric disturbances that are associated with bodily dysperception, such as eating disorders (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 1994). Recent research has cast BDD in the framework of the spec- trum of obsessive-compulsive disorders (Hollander, 1993; Neziroglu & Yaryura-Tobias, 1997). As such, it is suggested that disorders fal- 620 AUTHOR’S NOTE: I would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on an earlier version of this article. This data was collected while the author was a research fellow and staff psychologist at Institute for Bio-Behavioral Therapy and Research. Address correspon- dence to the author at Fordham University, Department of Psychology, 441 East Fordham Road, Bronx, NY 10458-5198; e-mail: mckay@murray.fordham.edu. BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION, Vol. 23 No. 4, October 1999 620-629 © 1999 Sage Publications, Inc.