PANIC DISORDERS IN PRIMARY CARE

ROBERT K. SCHNEIDER, MD

Assistant ProfessorDepartments of Psychiatry and Internal Medicine

Medical College of Virginia Campus of the Virginia Commonwealth University

Mental Health and Primary Care

MentalHealth

PrimaryCare

Primary Care and Mental Health

PrimaryCare

MentalHealth

Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study

• Five specific geographic areas

• Adults aged 18 years and older

• Structured interviews initially, at 6 and 12 months

• Defined areas of mental health services

70,000,000 people in the US have a Diagnosable Mental/Addictive Disorder

Mental/ Addictive Disorder

28%

No Mental/Addictive Disorder

72%

Reiger et al. 1993

40,000,000 people in the US receive services for Mental/Addictive Disorders

Reiger et al. 1993

No Treatment

85%

Treatment15%

Sectors Where Mental Health Services are Provided

• Specialty Mental /Addictive Sector– Inpatient and Outpatient Psychiatric/Addictive

• General Medical Sector– Nursing Home and Hospitals– Outpatient (Primary Care Setting)

• Other– Human Service Professionals (Clergy,

Counselors)– Voluntary support Network (Family, Friends,

AA)

Percentage of Patients per Sector

PATIENTS SECTOR 21.5% Not in Treatment

15.0% Specialty Mental Health, Inpatient and Outpatient

6.0% Overlap

54.1% General Medical Sector Outpatient, Primary Care

3.4% General Medical Sector, Inpatient, including Nursing Homes

“de facto mental health system” Regier,1978

• 54% of people with mental illness who seek

treatment are exclusively seen in the

“general medical sector”

• 25% of patients in primary care setting have

a diagnosable mental illness

Organizing Principles DSM-IVAffective Disorders

Anxiety Disorders

Psychotic Disorders

Substance Abuse

Other

Organizing Principles DSM-IVAffective Disorders Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder,

Dysthymia

Anxiety Disorders

Psychotic Disorders

Substance Abuse

Other

Organizing Principles DSM-IVAffective Disorders Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder,

Dysthymia

Anxiety Disorders GAD, Panic Disorder, PTSD,

OCD, Phobias

Psychotic Disorders

Substance Abuse

Other

Organizing Principles DSM-IVAffective Disorders Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder,

Dysthymia

Anxiety Disorders GAD, Panic Disorder, PTSD,

OCD, Phobias

Psychotic Disorders Schizophrenia, Schizoaffective

Substance Abuse

Other

Organizing Principles DSM-IVAffective Disorders Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder,

Dysthymia

Anxiety Disorders GAD, Panic Disorder, PTSD,

OCD, Phobias

Psychotic Disorders Schizophrenia, Schizoaffective

Substance Abuse Alcohol, Cocaine, Nicotine, Other

Other

Organizing Principles DSM-IVAffective Disorders Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder,

Dysthymia

Anxiety Disorders GAD, Panic Disorder, PTSD,

OCD, Phobias

Psychotic Disorders Schizophrenia, Schizoaffective

Substance Abuse Alcohol, Cocaine, Nicotine, Other

Other Psychiatric Aspects of Medical Disease:

Stroke, Dementia, HIV, CAD

Other Psych:

Personality Disorders, Eating Disorders, Somatization

Psychiatric Disorders in the Primary Care Setting• Any Diagnosis 30-50%

• Major Depression 7-19%

• Substance Abuse/Dependence 3-7%

• Any Anxiety Disorder 10-25%

• Panic Disorder 1-6%

JAMA Dec. 14,1994

Panic Attacks: General

• Panic Disorder 1.5-4.0% General Population

• “Panic Attacks” (no disorder) 15%

• 2-3x Females: Males

• Develops in Young Adulthood and Adolescence

Panic Attack: 4 or more

Fear of Dying Fear of Losing Control

Sweating Derealization

Trembling Nausea

SOB Choking feeling

Parathesias Hot flashes

Chest Pain

Agoraphobia: Criteria

Anxiety about being in places or situations

from which escape might be difficult or in

which help may not be available in the

event of having a panic attack

Panic Attacks: Comorbidity

• Substance Abuse

• Major Depression

• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

• Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

• Generalized Anxiety Disorder

• Personality Disorder

Panic-Depression Comorbidity

• 30-40% MDD have recurrent panic attacks

• 10-20% MDD have panic disorder

• 50-55% PD (or panic attacks) have MDD

• Patients with MDD and PD– Earlier onset MDD– More severe MDD

Medical Presentations

• Cardiac Panic

• Pulmonary Panic

• GI Panic

• “Vertigo” Panic

• Panic exacerbating pre-existing disease

“Cardiac” Panic

• Chest pain, tachycardia and palpations most common panic symptoms

• Chest pain with negative angiography– 43-61% have PD– 80% have PD, MDD or Both– 50% with dysfunction years after study

• 9.2% of cardiology practice had PD– 40-60% had ischemic heart disease

“Pulmonary” Panic

• 32% of asthmatic patients have panic attacks during an asthma attack

• Of patients referred for PFTs– 41% had panic attacks– 17% had panic disorder– (24%)-67% of patients with COPD had panic

disorder

• No PD – – Subjective improvement in dyspenia with

sertraline (only 7 in case series)

“GI” Panic

• 6-25%Unexplained GI symptoms in general pop

• Significant concurrence between IBS and PD

• Lifetime prevalence of PD– In IBD: ~3%– In IBS: 28%

“Vertigo” Panic

• Dizziness second most common symptom in PD

• 50-85% of PD patients report dizziness

• Some studies find a high rate of vestibular dysfunction in patients with PD – (especially if agoraphobia is present)

• Headache third most common PD symptom– 12-15% of headache patients have PD

“Personalities”

• Alexithymia

• Somatothymia

• Diminished ego strength

• Medicalized distress

• Resists diagnosis

• Personality Disorder

Panic-Personality Comorbidity

• 40-50% with PD have a Personality Disorder

• Most likely Cluster C (anxious type):– Avoidant– Obsessive-compulsive– Dependent

Treatment

• Psychotherapy-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

• SSRI

• TCAD

• Benzodiazepines

• MAOI

• Combinations

• Other

Management Issues

• Overstimulation

• Jitteriness

• Dependence

• Drug-Drug Interactions