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June 19, 2007
Anxiety is as common as depression but receives less attention
Compared with the strong focus on depression, less attention has been paid to anxiety disorders. Using questionnaires and interviews, U.S. researchers found that 188 of 965 consecutive patients at 15 primary care clinics had anxiety disorders, for a prevalence of 20%; 9% had post-traumatic stress disorder, 8% had generalized anxiety disorder, 7% had panic disorder, and 6% had social anxiety disorder. Overall, 41% received no medications, counseling, or psychotherapy.
Anxiety disorders were associated with physical and mental health-related problems and disability. A seven-item screening questionnaire (the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale) was 77% sensitive and 82% specific for any anxiety disorder. The first two items were less sensitive (65%) but similarly specific (88%). These items asked, "Over the past 2 weeks, how often have you been bothered by the following problems: [1] feeling nervous, anxious or on edge and [2] not being able to stop or control worrying."
This study confirms that in primary care settings, anxiety
disorders are common, are often untreated, and substantially impair health and quality of life.
Citation(s):
Kroenke K et al. Anxiety disorders in primary care: Prevalence, impairment, comorbidity, and detection. Ann Intern Med 2007 Mar 6; 146:317-25.
Katon W and Roy-Byrne P. Anxiety disorders: Efficient screening is the
first step in improving outcomes. Ann Intern Med 2007 Mar 6; 146:390-2.
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