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Concept
Panic disorder
Summary
Panic disorder is a mental and behavioral disorder, specifically an anxiety disorder characterized by reoccurring unexpected panic attacks. Panic attacks are sudden periods of intense fear that may include palpitations, sweating, shaking, shortness of breath, numbness, or a feeling that something terrible is going to happen. The maximum degree of symptoms occurs within minutes. There may be ongoing worries about having further attacks and avoidance of places where attacks have occurred in the past.
The cause of panic disorder is unknown. Panic disorder often runs in families. Risk factors include smoking, psychological stress, and a history of child abuse. Diagnosis involves ruling out other potential causes of anxiety including other mental disorders, medical conditions such as heart disease or hyperthyroidism, and drug use. Screening for the condition may be done using a questionnaire.
Panic disorder is usually treated with counselling and medications. The type of counselling used is typically cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) which is effective in more than half of people. Medications used include antidepressants, benzodiazepines, and beta blockers. Following stopping treatment up to 30% of people have a recurrence.
Panic disorder affects about 2.5% of people at some point in their life. It usually begins during adolescence or early adulthood, but may affect people of any age. It is less common in children and older people. Women are more often affected than men.
Individuals with panic disorder usually have a series of intense episodes of extreme anxiety during panic attacks. These attacks typically last about ten minutes, and can be as short-lived as 1–5 minutes, but can last twenty minutes to more than an hour, or until helpful intervention is made. Panic attacks can last up to an hour, and the intensity and symptoms of panic may vary.
In some cases, the attack may continue at unabated high intensity or seem to be increasing in severity.
Official source
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