Dissociative experiences and health anxiety in panic disorder

BACKGROUND: Dissociative experiences and health anxiety are frequently encountered in anxiety disorders and contribute to the burden of illness. AIM: The aim was to assess and compare dissociative experiences and level of health anxiety in patients with panic disorder and normal individuals. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We recruited forty eligible patients with panic disorder and forty healthy volunteers without any psychiatric diagnoses. Health anxiety was evaluated by the Short Health Anxiety Inventory and dissociative symptoms were assessed by the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES). RESULTS: Dissociative experiences were more frequently reported by patients with panic disorder compared to normal controls, but overall mean DES scores were lower in both groups compared to previous literature. A high level of health anxiety was also seen in panic disorder compared to normal individuals. CONCLUSION: Health anxiety and dissociative experiences, especially depersonalization-derealization, are commonly encountered in panic disorder and should be actively explored to understand how they influence psychopathology and treatment outcome.