Non-fearful panic disorder: a variant of panic in medical patients?

Psychosomatics. 2000 Jul-Aug;41(4):311-20. doi: 10.1176/appi.psy.41.4.311.

Abstract

Is it possible to have panic attacks without fear? Beitman et al. reported that 32%-41% of panic disorder (PD) patients seeking treatment for chest pain have non-fearful panic disorder (NFPD). To replicate and extend this work on NFPD, the authors compared NFPD patients (N = 48), PD patients (N = 60), and No-PD patients (N = 333) at the time of an emergency department visit and follow-up approximately 2 years later. The authors compared comorbid Axis I diagnoses, panic attack symptoms, and scores on self-report measures. A significantly greater proportion of PD patients had comorbid generalized anxiety disorder and agoraphobia than NFPD patients. NFPD patients had self-report scores that were between no-PD and PD patients or similar to no-PD patients, with the exception of the Beck Depression Inventory. At follow-up, NFPD patients, like PD patients, were still symptomatic and had either not improved or had worsened according to scores on all self-report measures. NFPD should be recognized as a variant of PD, both because of its high prevalence in medical settings and its poor prognosis.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Agoraphobia / diagnosis
  • Agoraphobia / psychology
  • Anxiety Disorders / diagnosis
  • Anxiety Disorders / psychology
  • Chest Pain / psychology*
  • Comorbidity
  • Fear*
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Panic Disorder / diagnosis*
  • Panic Disorder / psychology
  • Panic*
  • Prognosis