BACKGROUND Because panic attacks can be accompanied by surges in physiologic activation, we tested the hypothesis that panic disorder is characterized by fluctuations of physiologic variables in the absence of external triggers. METHODS Sixteen patients with panic disorder, 15 with generalized anxiety disorder, and 19 normal control subjects were asked to sit quietly for 30 min. Electrodermal...

Fifty years ago, when the effect of antidepressants on panic disorder was described, a significant progress in understanding this anxiety disorder has been made. Theoretical mechanisms and models of fear and panic disorder were proposed and tested in animal models and humans. With growing possibilities of non-invasive neuroimaging techniques, there is an increasing amount of information on the ...

OBJECTIVE The present study, is aimed to investigate the distributiondispersion of panic attack symptoms, the possible subtypes of panic disorder, and the clinical features related to these subtypes in patients with panic disorder. MATERIAL AND METHODS The study included 105 patients that presented to the Ondokuz Mayıs University Faculty of Medicine Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic and met the D...

OBJECTIVE This study explored the prevalence of panic disorder and other psychiatric disorders in young Han Chinese males with mitral valve prolapse (MVP). With the factors of age, sex, and ethnicity controlled, the specific role of MVP in panic disorder was analyzed. METHODS Subjects with chest pain aged between 18 and 25 years were assessed with the echocardiograph for MVP and the Chinese v...

BACKGROUND Although there is increasing evidence that panic attacks are common in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), little is known if posttraumatic panic is comparable to panic attacks observed in panic disorder (PD). OBJECTIVE This study examined the cognitive responses to panic attacks in participants with PD and PTSD. METHOD Participants with PD (n=22) and PTSD (n=18) were assessed ...

Genetic factors for panic disorder have been consistently observed in family and twin studies. Regulators of G-protein signaling (RGS) is a family of proteins that negatively regulate the intracellular signaling of G protein-coupled receptors such as dopamine and serotonin receptors. RGS2, one of the RGS families, has been suggested to plays a role in anxiety and/or aggressive behavior. Polymor...

Panic Control Treatment (PCT) is a widely used, empirically validated cognitive-behavioral treatment for panic disorder. Initially developed for the treatment of panic disorder with limited agoraphobic avoidance, PCT more recently has been finding broader applications. It has been used as an aid to pharmacotherapy discontinuation in panic disorder; in the treatment of panic attacks associated w...

Catecholamines such as norepinephrine, epinephrine, and dopamine are closely related to the autonomic nervous system, suggesting that panic disorder may involve elevated catecholamine levels. This study investigated basal and posttreatment catecholamine levels in patients with panic disorder. A total of 29 patients with panic disorder and 23 healthy controls participated in the study. Panic dis...

We investigated the comorbidity rate of migraine in outpatients with panic disorder, and the efficacy of pharmacotherapy for both disorders. Fifty-four patients who met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) criteria for panic disorder were recruited in the study. Forty-three patients were female, and their age ranged from 20 to 71 (...

OBJECTIVE Panic disorder is characterized by recurrent panic attacks, persistent concerns about additional attacks, and worry about the implications of the attack or significant changes in behavior related to the attacks. We examined the efficacy of 24-week naturalistic, open-label escitalopram treatment in terms of the response and remission rates and functional disability in 119 adult Korean ...