ARTICLE
The Panic Disorder prevalence and it's influence on the severity of aspirin-induced asthma
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Arch Psych Psych 2011;13(1):17-20
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ABSTRACT
Aim. Aspirin-induced asthma (AIA) is a distinct asthma phenotype in which the achievement of good somatic status is usually difficult. So far studies have reported a high rate of Panic Disorder (PD) in general asthma population, though the impact of this anxiety disorder on asthma remains unclear. This psychiatric comorbidity have not been studied in this type of asthma, yet. Methods. The author examined psychiatrically a group of 100 consecutive patients suffering from aspirin-induced asthma. There were 66 women (66%) and 34 men (34%). The average age was 52.7 (SD=12.3) for women and 49.8 (SD=13.0) for men. Psychiatric interview and assessment was performed by experienced liaison psychiatrist according to ICD-10 and DSM-IV diagnosis using M.I.N.I 5.0 and Panic And Agoraphobia Scale (PAS). Asthma severity was assessed according to NHLBI/NAEPP 2007. Results. 41% percent of patients met the diagnostic criteria for PD. Analyses revealed that there is correlation between asthma severity and PD presence and intensity of anxiety symptoms. Conclusions. Results suggest that PD is prevalent among patients with aspirin-induced asthma and it's symptom's presence is associated with worse asthma severity. Physicians should consider the impact of this condition while planning the optimal treatment.