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Panic disorder and subthreshold panic in the UK general population: Epidemiology, comorbidity and functional limitation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

P. Skapinakis ,
G. Lewis ,
S. Davies ,
T. Brugha ,
M. Prince  and
N. Singleton
P. Skapinakis*
Affiliation:
Academic Unit of Psychiatry, University of Bristol, Cotham House, Cotham Hill, BS6 6JLBristol, UK Department of Psychiatry, University of Ioannina School of Medicine, Ioannina, Greece
G. Lewis
Affiliation:
Academic Unit of Psychiatry, University of Bristol, Cotham House, Cotham Hill, BS6 6JLBristol, UK
S. Davies
Affiliation:
Academic Unit of Psychiatry, University of Bristol, Cotham House, Cotham Hill, BS6 6JLBristol, UK
T. Brugha
Affiliation:
Division of Psychiatry, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
M. Prince
Affiliation:
Institute of Psychiatry, King's College, London, UK
N. Singleton
Affiliation:
UK Drug Policy Commission, London, UK
*
*Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 117 9546796; fax: +44 117 9546672. E-mail address: p.skapinakis@bristol.ac.uk (P. Skapinakis).
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Abstract

Objective

The epidemiology of panic disorder has not been investigated in the past in the UK using a nationally representative sample of the population. The aim of the present paper was to examine the epidemiology, comorbidity and functional impairment of subthreshold panic and panic disorder with or without agoraphobia.

Method

We used data from the 2000 Office for National Statistics Psychiatric Morbidity survey (N = 8580). Panic disorder and agoraphobia were assessed with the Revised Clinical Interview Schedule (CIS-R).

Result

The prevalence of panic disorder with or without agoraphobia was 1.70% (95% confidence interval: 1.41–2.03%). Subthreshold panic was more common. Economic inactivity was consistently associated with all syndromes. The comorbidity pattern of the panic syndromes and the associated functional impairment show that panic-related conditions are important public health problems, even in subthreshold status.

Conclusions

The findings show that efforts to reduce the disability associated with psychiatric disorders should include detection and management of panic disorder.

Keywords

Panic disorder, epidemiologyPrevalenceComorbidity
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 26 , Issue 6 , September 2011 , pp. 354 - 362
Copyright
Copyright © Elsevier Masson SAS 2011

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