You may have another condition along with panic disorder that can make successful treatment more difficult. Other conditions include:1, 2
- Depression, which occurs in approximately 50% of people with panic disorder.3
- Anxiety and anxiety disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder.
- Substance abuse problems with drugs or alcohol, which often are a result of attempts to cope with panic attacks.
- Social anxiety disorder, a fear of being humiliated in public.
- Body dysmorphic disorder, a focus on a real or imagined defect in physical appearance.
- Hypochondriasis, a fear of having a serious disease based on real or imagined symptoms.
- Somatization disorders, the presence of physical symptoms that are caused by mental conditions.
References
Citations
Kumar S, Oakley-Browne M (2007). Panic disorder, search date May 2006. Online version of BMJ Clinical Evidence. Available online: http://www.clinicalevidence.com.
American Psychiatric Association (1998). Practice guideline for the treatment of patients with panic disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry, 155(5 Suppl): 1–34.
Merritt TC (2000). Recognition and acute managementof patients with panic attacks in the emergency department. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America, 18(2): 289–300.
Credits
| Author | Jeannette Curtis |
| Editor | Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA |
| Associate Editor | Pat Truman, MATC |
| Primary Medical Reviewer | Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine |
| Specialist Medical Reviewer | Lisa S. Weinstock, MD - Psychiatry |
| Last Updated | September 16, 2008 |



