Anxiety Disorder

Source: womenshealth.about.com --- 3 days ago
A look at Generalized Anxiety Disorder or GAD, and when to see your doctor, the symptoms of GAD, and how Anxiety affects women. ...

Source: psychology.about.com --- 22 days ago
Generalized Anxiety Disorder is characterized by excessive worry and Anxiety lasting six months or longer. Learn more about the prevalence, symptoms, and treatments of generalized Anxiety Disorder. ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 31 days ago
Related Articles Psychometric evaluation of a patient-rated troubling symptom scale for generalized Anxiety Disorder clinical trials. Psychopharmacol Bull. 2008;41(3):68-90 Authors: Pandina GJ, Revicki DA, Kleinman L, Turkoz I, Wu J, Mahmoud R, Gharabawi GM Background: The majority of clinical outcome assessments developed for generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) may not efficiently and sensitively reflect heterogeneous symptom clusters from a patient perspective. The Patient-Rated Troubling Symptoms Scale for Anxiety (PaRTS-A) instrument was developed to provide an individualized assessment of patient relevant GAD symptoms. Objective: The objective of this analysis was to evaluate the psychometric characteristics of the PaRTS-A. Methods: Data were taken from a 6-week clinical trial evaluating the efficacy of adjunctive risperidone therapy in GAD patients undergoing standard treatment. Patients completed the PaRTS-A, the Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire (Q-LES-Q), and the Sheehan Disability Scale (SDS) as well as impressions of improvement. Physicians completed the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A). A instrument characteristics were assessed through statistical tests of reliability, reproducibility, construct and discriminant validity, and responsiveness. Results: In the item response theory (IRT) analysis, the PaRTS-A items fit into a single construct of Anxiety. Internal consistency reliability exceeded 0.70 ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 13 days ago
Related Articles A randomized trial of brief cognitive-behavioral therapy for prevention of generalized Anxiety Disorder. J Clin Psychiatry. 2008 Aug;69(8):1336 Authors: Higgins DM, Hecker JE PMID: 18816156 [PubMed - in process] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 28 days ago
Related Articles Prevalence, diagnosis, and treatment of depression and generalized Anxiety Disorder in a diverse urban community. Psychiatr Serv. 2008 Jun;59(6):641-7 Authors: Gwynn RC, McQuistion HL, McVeigh KH, Garg RK, Frieden TR, Thorpe LE OBJECTIVE: This study assessed the prevalence, diagnosis, and treatment of major depressive Disorder and generalized Anxiety Disorder among New York City adults. METHODS: As part of the first community-specific Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in the United States, depression and Anxiety were assessed in a representative sample of 1,817 noninstitutionalized adults in 2004. RESULTS: A total of 8% had major depressive Disorder and 4% had generalized Anxiety Disorder. Respondents with depression were more likely to be formerly married, publicly insured, younger, and U.S. born. Only 55% of adults with depression were diagnosed, and 38% of those with depression or Anxiety were in treatment; individuals with a diagnosis of depression were more likely to receive treatment than those without a diagnosis (61% versus 7%; p<.001). Immigrants with depression were 60% less likely to be diagnosed than their U.S.-born counterparts; immigrants arriving in this country ten or more years ago had slightly more Anxiety than immigrants arriving less than ten years ago (3% versus 2%, not significant). Among respondents with Anxiety, 23% reported disability compared with 15% of those with depression. Compared w ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 20 days ago
Related Articles The unique impact of parent training for separation Anxiety Disorder in children. Behav Ther. 2008 Jun;39(2):195-206 Authors: Eisen AR, Raleigh H, Neuhoff CC This investigation examined the preliminary efficacy of an integrated cognitive-behavioral parent-training protocol for six families of separation-anxious children (7 to 10 years of age) using a multiple baseline design across participants. Although families were assessed on child, parent, and clinician ratings at pre- and posttreatment as well as 6-month follow-up, only parents received education and training. Although the parent-training protocol was largely effective and treatment gains were maintained at 6-month follow-up, only those child participants whose parents experienced clinically significant improvement on parental process measures (i.e., enhanced efficacy or satisfaction, reduced stress) achieved high end-state functioning. Implications regarding the importance of individualized family-based interventions for treating anxious youth are discussed. PMID: 18502252 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 7 days ago
Related Articles [Evaluation of the effectiveness of crenotherapy in treating generalized Anxiety Disorder] Sante Publique. 2008 Mar-Apr;20(2):105-12 Authors: Salamon R, Christine G, Olié JP, Dubois O In preliminary studies, crenotherapy has emerged as a possible effective treatment for general Anxiety Disorder. We have compared crenotherapy to Paroxetine in a randomized multicentric control trial for a period of 8 weeks. 237 patients who met the diagnosis criteria of generalized Anxiety Disorder (DSM-IV) were recruited, 117 patients were randomly assigned to Crenotherapy and 120 to Paroxetine. Evaluation of effectiveness was assessed using the scoring system according to the Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (HAMA). 207 patients were followed throughout the trial and completed the study. The HAMA scores showed an improvement across the two groups with a significant advantage of Crenotherapy compared with Paroxetine (p < 0.0001). The establishment and implementation of this trial have raised several methodological problems (namely because the use of a placebo was not possible) that are discussed by the authors. PMID: 18693409 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 7 days ago
Related Articles Response to emotional expressions in generalized social phobia and generalized Anxiety Disorder: evidence for separate disorders. Am J Psychiatry. 2008 Sep;165(9):1193-202 Authors: Blair K, Shaywitz J, Smith BW, Rhodes R, Geraci M, Jones M, McCaffrey D, Vythilingam M, Finger E, Mondillo K, Jacobs M, Charney DS, Blair RJ, Drevets WC, Pine DS OBJECTIVE: Generalized social phobia involves fear/avoidance, specifically of social situations, whereas generalized Anxiety Disorder involves intrusive worry about diverse circumstances. It remains unclear the degree to which these two, often comorbid, conditions represent distinct disorders or alternative presentations of a single, core underlying pathology. Functional magnetic resonance imaging assessed the neural response to facial expressions in generalized social phobia and generalized Anxiety Disorder. METHOD: Individuals matched on age, IQ, and gender with generalized social phobia without generalized Anxiety Disorder (N=17), generalized Anxiety Disorder (N=17), or no psychopathology (N=17) viewed neutral, fearful, and angry expressions while ostensibly making a simple gender judgment. RESULTS: The patients with generalized social phobia without generalized Anxiety Disorder showed increased activation to fearful relative to neutral expressions in several regions, including the amygdala, compared to healthy individuals. This increased amygdala response related to self-report ...

Source: www.moreover.com --- 4 days ago
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Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 7 days ago
Related Articles [Separation Anxiety Disorder in a sample of children of divorce] Psicothema. 2008 Aug;20(3):383-8 Authors: Orgilés Amorós M, Espada Sánchez JP, Méndez Carrillo X Anxiety in children through separation from parents is one of the most frequent psychological problems in the infantile population. Children of divorce are more vulnerable to suffer this Disorder due to the abrupt separation from one of the parents after the break-up, which they may experience as a traumatic event that predisposes them to react anxiously in daily separations. The purpose of this study is to examine the presence of symptoms of separation Anxiety and general Anxiety in a Spanish sample of 95 students of ages between 8 and 12 years. They were compared to a group of children of similar ages and sex whose parents are not divorced. The results show that children of divorce present higher levels of separation Anxiety than the children whose parents remain together. Moreover, they show significant levels of generalized Anxiety, but similar to that of the other group of children (undivorced parents). The clinical implications of these findings are discussed, emphasizing the importance of cooperation and frequent contact of the children with both parents to promote their security and autonomy. PMID: 18674431 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 2 days ago
Related Articles Salivary cortisol is associated with diagnosis and severity of late-life generalized Anxiety Disorder. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2008 Jul;33(6):773-81 Authors: Mantella RC, Butters MA, Amico JA, Mazumdar S, Rollman BL, Begley AE, Reynolds CF, Lenze EJ Age-associated alterations in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis functioning may make individuals more susceptible to HPA dysregulation in the context of mood and Anxiety disorders. Little to no research has been done to examine HPA axis function in generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), particularly in late-life GAD, the most prevalent Anxiety Disorder in the elderly. The study sample consisted of 71 GAD subjects and 40 nonanxious comparison subjects over 60 years of age. We examined the hypotheses that elderly individuals with GAD will have elevated salivary cortisol levels compared to nonanxious subjects, and that elevated cortisol levels in GAD will be associated with measures of symptom severity. We report that late-life GAD is characterized by elevated basal salivary cortisol levels, with higher peak cortisol levels and larger areas under the curve, compared to nonanxious subjects. Additionally, severity of GAD as measured by the GAD Severity Scale and the Penn State Worry Questionnaire are positively correlated with cortisol levels. These data demonstrate HPA axis dysfunction in late-life GAD and suggest the need for additional research on the influence of agin ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 8 days ago
Related Articles Generalized Anxiety Disorder severity scale validation in older adults. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2008 Oct;16(10):813-8 Authors: Andreescu C, Belnap BH, Rollman BL, Houck P, Ciliberti C, Mazumdar S, Shear MK, Lenze EJ OBJECTIVES: The Generalized Anxiety Disorder Severity Scale (GADSS) is a validated measure of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) symptom severity. Given the high prevalence of GAD in the elderly and the need for a validated scale to assess GAD severity in this age group, the authors examined the psychometric properties of the GADSS in the elderly. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS: The authors examined a sample of 134 elderly subjects (age 60 and above) who met diagnostic criteria for current GAD, 33 healthy elderly comparison subjects (age 60 and above) and 186 younger subjects (age 18-60) diagnosed with GAD. RESULTS: The GADSS had a high internal consistency in the elderly subjects (raw Cronbach's alpha = 0.76). Pearson correlations showed a significant positive correlation between GADSS, Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety and Penn State Worry Questionnaire. Pearson correlations showed an inverse significant correlation between GADSS and the Medical Outcome Study SF-36. There was no correlation between GADSS and Mini Mental State Examination or Cumulative Illness Rating Scale for Geriatrics. CONCLUSIONS: The results showed a good convergent, concurrent, and discriminant validity of the GADSS when used for eld ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 7 days ago
Related Articles Qualitative changes in symptomatology as an effect of treatment with escitalopram in generalized Anxiety Disorder and major depressive Disorder. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2008 Apr;258(3):171-8 Authors: Lecrubier Y, Dolberg OT, Andersen HF, Weiller E The purpose of this article is to examine the similarities and differences between patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) versus Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) versus MDD with Anxiety symptoms. Data were analysed from all randomized double-blind clinical studies with escitalopram that measured symptoms using either Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) or Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). The contribution of each item of a scale to the total score was calculated before and after treatment, in remitters. Most single items of the HAMA contribute nearly equally in patients with GAD. In patients with MDD, four symptoms (i.e. anxious mood, tension, insomnia and concentration) contribute to most to the HAMA total score. In patients with GAD, three symptoms (tension, sleep and concentration) contribute two-thirds of the MADRS total score. In contrast, most MADRS items contribute equally to the total score in patients with MDD. After treatment to remission, the profile of residual symptoms MDD or GAD was similar to the symptom profile before treatment. Anxiety symptoms are very common in patients with MDD or GAD, and the symptomatic pattern is similar. ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 30 days ago
Related Articles A preliminary study of fMRI-guided rTMS in the treatment of generalized Anxiety Disorder. J Clin Psychiatry. 2008 Jul;69(7):1092-8 Authors: Bystritsky A, Kaplan JT, Feusner JD, Kerwin LE, Wadekar M, Burock M, Wu AD, Iacoboni M BACKGROUND: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a noninvasive method that holds promise for treating several psychiatric disorders. Yet the most effective location and parameters for treatment need more exploration. Also, whether rTMS is an effective treatment for individuals with a DSM-IV diagnosis of generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) has not been empirically tested. The goal of this pilot study was to evaluate whether functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)-guided rTMS is effective in reducing symptoms of GAD. METHOD: Ten participants with a DSM-IV diagnosis of GAD, recruited from the UCLA Anxiety Disorders Program, and between the ages of 18 and 56 years were enrolled in the study from August 2006 to March 2007. A pretreatment symptom provocation fMRI experiment was used to determine the most active location in the prefrontal cortex of the participants. Ten participants completed 6 sessions of rTMS over the course of 3 weeks, stereotactically directed to the previously determined prefrontal location. The primary efficacy measures were the Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (HAM-A) and the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement of Illness (CGI-I) scale. Response to tre ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 30 days ago
Related Articles Relationship of attention-deficit-hyperactivity Disorder symptoms, depressive/Anxiety symptoms, and life quality in young men. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2008 Aug;62(4):421-6 Authors: Chao CY, Gau SS, Mao WC, Shyu JF, Chen YC, Yeh CB Aim: Attention-deficit-hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) continues to be among the most frequently missed of psychiatric diagnoses in adults because its presentation in adulthood so often mimics those of better-known disorders. The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between ADHD symptoms, depression/Anxiety symptoms, and life quality in young men. Methods: Nine hundred and twenty-nine draftees into the Taiwanese army completed the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS), the World Health Organization (WHO) Quality of Life-Brief Version, the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, the second edition of the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Beck Anxiety Scale. Based on high ASRS scores, a total of 328 adults (35.3%) were identified as having ADHD: 65 (7.0%) with definite ADHD and 263 (28.3%) with probable ADHD. Results: The 328 subjects in the ADHD group had more severe depressive, Anxiety symptoms and daytime sleepiness, and had poorer quality of life than the 601 controls (all P < 0.05). Conclusions: ADHD should be included in the differential diagnosis for young men presenting with Anxiety, depression, daytime sleepiness, and poor quality of life. PMID: 18778439 [PubMed - in process] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 32 days ago
Related Articles A pilot study of clonazepam versus psychodynamic group therapy plus clonazepam in the treatment of generalized social Anxiety Disorder. Eur Psychiatry. 2008 Sep 5; Authors: Knijnik DZ, Blanco C, Salum GA, Moraes CU, Mombach C, Almeida E, Pereira M, Strapasson A, Manfro GG, Eizirik CL BACKGROUND: Both psychodynamic group therapy (PGT) and clonazepam are used as treatment strategies in reducing symptoms of generalized social Anxiety Disorder (GSAD). However, many individuals remain symptomatic after treatment with PGT or clonazepam. METHOD: Fifty-eight adult outpatients with a diagnosis of GSAD according to DSM-IV were randomized to 12weeks PGT plus clonazepam or clonazepam. The Clinical Global Impression-Improvement (CGI-I) Scale was the primary efficacy measure. Secondary efficacy measures included the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) total score, the World Health Organization Instrument to Assess Quality of Life-Brief (WHOQOL-Bref) Scale and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). RESULTS: CGI-I data from 57 patients (intent-to-treat population) showed that patients who received PGT plus clonazepam presented significantly greater improvement than those who received clonazepam (P=0.033). There were no significant differences between the two groups in the secondary efficacy measures. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the combination of PGT with clonazepam may be a promising strategy for the treatment of GSAD, regar ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 17 days ago
Related Articles Differential patterns of lifetime multiple Anxiety Disorder comorbidity between Latino adults with bipolar I and major depressive disorders. Bull Menninger Clin. 2008;72(2):130-48 Authors: Dilsaver SC, Benazzi F, Akiskal KK, Akiskal HS BACKGROUND: To determine the lifetime rates of panic Disorder, obsessive-compulsive Disorder (OCD), social phobia, and posttraumatic stress Disorder (PTSD) among adult Latino patients with major depressive Disorder (MDD) and bipolar Disorder (BPD), and whether there are dose-response relationships between loading for comorbid Anxiety disorders, the probability of having BPD, and attributes of severity of illness. METHODS: In a public sector clinic for the indigent located in a semiclosed rural community, 187 consecutively presenting affectively ill Latino patients were evaluated by use of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV. Polarity and the lifetime prevalence of panic Disorder, OCD, social phobia, and PTSD were determined. Logistic regression was used to test associations. Trends in positive predictive values (PPVs) and likelihood ratios were assessed to determine whether dose-response relationships existed between loading for comorbid Anxiety disorders and the likelihood of having BPD as opposed to MDD, psychosis, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts. Results: Of 187 subjects, 118 (63.1%) had MDD and 69 (36.9%) had BPD. The odds ratio of a patient with BPD, relative to MDD ...

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com --- 40 days ago
AstraZeneca announced new SEROQUEL XR™ (extended release quetiapine fumarate) clinical study data in patients with Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD), presented at the 21st European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) Congress in Barcelona. In this study, extended release quetiapine fumarate significantly improved symptoms of Anxiety at Week 8 compared with placebo and this was observed as early as day 4. ...

Source: blogs.christianet.com --- 34 days ago
Anxiety Disorder symptoms include rapid heart rate, fear, restlessness, inability to rest at night, difficulty in concentrating and muscle pain. ...

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com --- 35 days ago
Millions of children across the United States suffer from disorders such as Tourette's Syndrome and Anxiety disorders, including Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - conditions which often affect their performance in school on both social and academic levels. ...