title: The attributable burden of panic disorder in the impairment of quality of life in a national survey in Italy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim was to measure the lifetime prevalence of panic disorder (PD) in an Italian community sample, and to estimate the burden attributable to PD in compromising the quality of life (QoL) of people diagnosed with it.
  
  
  METHODS
  Community survey was conducted on a sample of 4,999 randomly selected adult subjects. Instruments used were semi-structured clinical interview Advanced Neuropsychiatric Tools and Assessment Schedule (ANTAS), administered by clinicians and allowing diagnosis according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (4th ed.; DSM-IV); Short Form Health Survey (SF-12).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The lifetime prevalence of PD was 3.6% (4.4% in females, 2.5% in males; p = .002). People with PD had a lower SF-12 score than the standardized community sample (35.5 ± 6.5 vs. 38.4 ± 5.9; p < .0001) with a mean difference (attributable burden) of 2.9 ± 0.7, that is, lower than PD with agoraphobia (AP; 4.2 ± 2.4). Wilson Disease (WD), Multiple Sclerosis, Major Depressive Disorder and Eating Disorders (ED) show a higher attributable burden in impaired QoL than PD, while the attributable burden of PD with AP is not lower than in ED and WD.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The burden attributable to the impairment of QoL following a lifetime diagnosis of PD was found to be not so great compared to the impairment caused by Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) or neurological conditions. The comorbidity of PD with AP worsens QoL significantly.
authors.affiliation: University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy mgcarta@tiscali.it.
authors.forename: Mauro Giovanni
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Carta
authors.affiliation: University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria Francesca
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Moro
authors.affiliation: University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
authors.forename: Eugenio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Aguglia
authors.affiliation: University of Udine, Udine, Italy.
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Balestrieri
authors.affiliation: University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
authors.forename: Filippo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Caraci
authors.affiliation: University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Liliana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dell'Osso
authors.affiliation: University of Bari, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Guido
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Di Sciascio
authors.affiliation: University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
authors.forename: Filippo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Drago
authors.affiliation: University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria Carolina
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Hardoy
authors.affiliation: University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy.
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: D'Aloja
authors.affiliation: Panic and Respiration Laboratory, Institute of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Machado
authors.affiliation: University of L'Aquila, L'Aquila, Italy.
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Roncone
authors.affiliation: University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Faravelli
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000379:Agoraphobia / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016584:Panic Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D017678:Sex Distribution; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Italy; Panic disorder; community survey; quality of life