Biomaterial Database

Panic disorder in the families of patients with normal coronary arteries and non-fear panic disorder. 1992

B D Beitman, and A M Thomas, and M G Kushner

Department of Psychiatry, University of Missouri Hospital and Clinics, Columbia 65212.

Patients with non-fear panic disorder (NFPD) meet DSM-III-R criteria for panic disorder, but do not report subjective fear or anxiety. Although apparently common in medical settings, this controversial group is in need of further diagnostic validation. This study assessed family history of panic disorder in patients with chest pain and normal coronary arteries (CP/NCA) and either NFPD, panic disorder with fear, or no panic. It was hypothesized that the two panic disorder groups would have similar, elevated rates of panic disorder in their first-degree relatives, compared to patients without panic. The results support the hypothesis; about 17% of the first-degree relatives of both NFPD and panic disorder patients were diagnosable with panic disorder according to proband interviews, whereas only 4.6% of the first-degree relatives of patients without panic were so diagnosable. These results support the diagnostic validity of NFPD in CP/NCA patients, because such patients had a family history of panic disorder similar to patients with a more classical panic disorder presentation. The lack of fear symptoms and behavior in NFPD may cause panic disorder to be overlooked as a potential cause of somatic symptoms in patients with no medical explanation for their condition.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008297	Male		Males
D008875	Middle Aged	An adult aged 45 - 64 years.	Middle Age
D009449	Neurocirculatory Asthenia	A clinical syndrome characterized by palpitation, SHORTNESS OF BREATH, labored breathing, subjective complaints of effort and discomfort, all following slight PHYSICAL EXERTION. Other symptoms may be DIZZINESS, tremulousness, SWEATING, and INSOMNIA. Neurocirculatory asthenia is most typically seen as a form of anxiety disorder.	Cardiac Neurosis,Effort Syndrome,Hyperkinetic Heart Syndrome,Phobia, Cardiac,Asthenia, Neurocirculatory,Cardiac Neuroses,Cardiac Phobia,Heart Syndrome, Hyperkinetic,Neurocirculatory Asthenias,Neurosis, Cardiac,Syndrome, Effort,Syndrome, Hyperkinetic Heart
D002637	Chest Pain	Pressure, burning, or numbness in the chest.	Precordial Catch,Precordial Catch Syndrome,Texidor's Twinge,Chest Pains,Pain, Chest,Pains, Chest,Syndrome, Precordial Catch,Texidor Twinge
D003327	Coronary Disease	An imbalance between myocardial functional requirements and the capacity of the CORONARY VESSELS to supply sufficient blood flow. It is a form of MYOCARDIAL ISCHEMIA (insufficient blood supply to the heart muscle) caused by a decreased capacity of the coronary vessels.	Coronary Heart Disease,Coronary Diseases,Coronary Heart Diseases,Disease, Coronary,Disease, Coronary Heart,Diseases, Coronary,Diseases, Coronary Heart,Heart Disease, Coronary,Heart Diseases, Coronary
D005239	Fear	The affective response to an actual current external danger which subsides with the elimination of the threatening condition.	Threat Cues,Threat Sensitivity,Cue, Threat,Fears,Sensitivity, Threat,Threat Cue,Threat Sensitivities
D005260	Female		Females
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012307	Risk Factors	An aspect of personal behavior or lifestyle, environmental exposure, inborn or inherited characteristic, which, based on epidemiological evidence, is known to be associated with a health-related condition considered important to prevent.	Health Correlates,Risk Factor Scores,Risk Scores,Social Risk Factors,Population at Risk,Populations at Risk,Correlates, Health,Factor, Risk,Factor, Social Risk,Factors, Social Risk,Risk Factor,Risk Factor Score,Risk Factor, Social,Risk Factors, Social,Risk Score,Score, Risk,Score, Risk Factor,Social Risk Factor
D012803	Sick Role	Set of expectations that exempt persons from responsibility for their illness and exempt them from usual responsibilities.	Role, Sick,Roles, Sick,Sick Roles