Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-r6qrq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-28T10:11:56.967Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Social Costs of Anxiety Disorders

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 August 2018

Andrew C. Leon ,
Laura Portera  and
Myrna M. Weissman
Andrew C. Leon*
Affiliation:
Cornell University Medical College
Laura Portera
Affiliation:
Cornell University Medical College
Myrna M. Weissman
Affiliation:
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University
*
Dr A. C. Leon, Department of Psychiatry, Box 147, Cornell University Medical College, 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY 10021
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background. The social costs of anxiety disorders, which afflict a substantial proportion of the general population in the United States, are considered.

Method. Data from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Epidemiological Catchment Area Program were analysed.

Results. Over 6% of men and 13% of women in the sample of 18 571 had suffered from a DSM–III anxiety disorder in the past six months. Nearly 30% of those with panic disorder had used the general medical system for emotional, alcohol or drug-related problems in the six months prior to the interview. Those with anxiety disorders were also more likely to seek help from emergency rooms and from the specialised mental health system. Men with panic disorder, phobias or obsessive–compulsive disorder in the previous six months are more likely to be chronically unemployed and to receive disability or welfare.

Discussion. Once correctly diagnosed there are safe and effective psychopharmacologic and behavioural treatments for the anxiety disorders. Nevertheless the burden of anxiety disorders extends beyond the direct costs of treatment to the indirect costs of impaired social functioning.

Type
II. Economic Aspects of Programmes Dealing with Anxiety Disorders
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 166 , Issue S27: Economics of Anxiety and Depression , April 1995 , pp. 19 - 22
Copyright
Copyright © 1995 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

American Psychiatric Association, Committee on Nomenclature and Statistics (1980) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (3rd Edn) (DSM–III) Washington, DC: APA.Google Scholar
Apfeldorf, W. A., Shear, M. K., Leon, A. C., et al (1994) A brief screen for panic disorder. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 8, 71–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barlow, D. (1988) Anxiety and its Disorders: The Nature and Treatment. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Broadhead, W. E., Leon, A. C., Weissman, M. M., et al (1995) Development and validation of the SDDS-PC screen for multiple mental disorders in primary care. Archives of Family Medicine, in press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clomipramine Collaborative Study Group (1991) Clomipramine in the treatment of patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder. Archives of General Psychiatry, 48, 730–738.Google Scholar
Eaton, W. W., Dryman, A. & Weissman, M. M. (1991) Panic and phobia. In Psychiatric Disorders in America: The Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study (eds Robins, L. N. & Regier, D. A.). New York: The Free Press.Google Scholar
Gelernter, C. S., Uhde, T. W., Cimbolic, P., et al (1991) Cognitive–behavioral and pharmacologic treatments of social phobia. Archives of General Psychiatry, 48, 938–945.Google Scholar
Johnson, J., Weissman, M. M. & Klerman, G. L. (1990) Panic disorder, comorbidity and suicide attempts. Archives of General Psychiatry, 47, 805–808.Google Scholar
Karno, M. & Golding, J. M. (1991) Obsessive–compulsive disorder. In Psychiatric Disorders in America: The Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study (eds Robins, L. N. & Regier, D. A.). New York: The Free Press.Google Scholar
Klerman, G. L., Weissman, M. M., Ouellette, R., et al (1991) Panic attacks in the community: Social morbidity and health care utilization. Journal of the American Medical Association, 265, 742–746.Google Scholar
Markowitz, J. S., Weissman, M. M., Ouellette, R., et al (1989) Quality of life in panic disorder. Archives of General Psychiatry, 46, 984–992.Google Scholar
NIH Consensus Development Conference (1991) Treatment of panic disorder. NIH Consensus Development Conference, September 25–27, 1991, 9. Bethesda, Maryland.Google Scholar
Regier, D. A., Boyd, J. H., Burke, J. D., et al (1988) One-month prevalence of mental disorders in the United States: based on five epidemiologic catchment area sites. Archives of General Psychiatry, 45, 977–986.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Regier, D. A., Myers, J. K., Kramer, M., et al (1984) The NIMH Epidemiological Catchment Area Program: historical context, major obstacles, and study population characteristics. Archives of General Psychiatry, 41, 934–941.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robins, L. N., Helzer, J. E., Croughan, J., et al (1981) National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule: its history, characteristics, and validity. Archives of General Psychiatry, 38, 381–389.Google Scholar
Robins, L. N., Helzer, J. E., Weissman, M. M., et al (1984) Lifetime prevalence of specific psychiatric disorders in three sites. Archives of General Psychiatry, 41, 949–958.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Robins, L. N. & Regier, D. A. (eds) (1991) Psychiatric Disorders in America: The Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study. New York: The Free Press.Google Scholar
Weissman, M. M., Klerman, G. L., Markowitz, J. S., et al (1989) Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in panic disorder and panic attacks. New England Journal of Medicine, 321, 1209–1214.Google Scholar
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.