New research released this month about the prevalence of body-focused repetitive behaviors (BFRBs) suggests that these disorders are more common than previous research stated.

Prevalence? What’s prevalence?

Prevalence is a term used in epidemiology to describe a proportion of a population that has a condition. Mostly, it refers to the commonality of something. The numbers usually represent a fraction of a percentage of cases per 100,000 people but are specific to a given period.

While prevalence often suggests that the percentage provided is a real number, it is based on a sample population. Sample populations are smaller versions of the entire population which mean that even if there is the prevalence of 10% indicated for a condition, it does not mean that 10% of people have it. Instead, it means 10% of a sample population has it which implies that percentage reflects the general population.

The 26th Annual Conference on BFRBs will be held May 2-5, 2019, in Chantilly, VA.

The Annual Conference on Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors brings together people of all ages affected by BFRBs and their families, treatment providers, researchers, and salon and service providers for a "life-changing" weekend of education and community.

They specifically seek workshops that:

Still a misunderstood condition, research is providing more ways for clinicians to diagnose trichotillomania and its subtypes accurately. However, many negative connotations the word “diagnosis” has, there are benefits to diagnostic accuracy for people with trichotillomania.

Diagnosis is…

Therapists have mixed feelings about the diagnostic process. Some believe it is essential and imperative for accurate treatment while others look at it as a means to facilitate treatment but not as important as what the client experiences. Some will require a client to participate in multiple types of assessments and tests to get the diagnosis right, while others will only rely on client self-report and then pick an appropriate label out of the DSM-5. Regardless of one’s therapeutic perspective, an accurate diagnosis is key to selecting evidence-based treatments for clients. For people with trichotillomania, diagnosis can be even more important due to the prevalence of misdiagnosis which does not help clients at all.