title: Psychoticism in patients with panic disorder with or without comorbid agoraphobia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A few case-reports have previously described transient psychotic-like symptoms in non-psychotic patients with panic disorder (PD). We aimed to systematically explore whether PD patients without any current or past psychosis can be differentiated according to the severity of 'psychoticism' as a dimension, comprising clinical features such as psychotic-like experiences, increased social alienation, hostility and suspiciousness.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sample included 35 (female = 26) medication-free, non-psychotic patients consecutively referred from our Department's Outpatient Clinic for acute symptoms of DSM-5 PD with (PDA; N = 29) or without concurrent agoraphobia. Psychometric measures included the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R), Agoraphobic Cognitions Questionnaire (ACQ), Body Sensations Questionnaire (BSQ), and panic attacks during last 21 days PA-21d.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Multiple regression analysis (forward stepwise) revealed that, among all SCL-90-R subscales, the psychoticism-subscale was most significantly associated with panic-related beliefs included in the ACQ, while significant associations emerged between the paranoid ideation-subscale and the ACQ and BSQ measures. Moreover, significant correlations emerged between the SCL-90-R psychoticism-subscale and all three measures of PD symptoms (ACQ, BSQ, PA-21d) and between the SCL-90-R paranoid ideation-subscale and both the ACQ and BSQ.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This significant association between levels of psychoticism and severity of panic symptoms may reflect a more severe subtype of PD.
authors.affiliation: a 1st Department of Psychiatry , Eginition Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens , Athens , Greece.
authors.forename: Vasilios G
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0197-9583
authors.initials: VG
authors.lastname: Masdrakis
authors.affiliation: a 1st Department of Psychiatry , Eginition Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens , Athens , Greece.
authors.forename: Emilia-Maria
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Legaki
authors.affiliation: a 1st Department of Psychiatry , Eginition Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens , Athens , Greece.
authors.forename: Charalambos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Papageorgiou
authors.affiliation: a 1st Department of Psychiatry , Eginition Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens , Athens , Greece.
authors.forename: Manolis
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Markianos
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000379:Agoraphobia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016584:Panic Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Agoraphobia; cognitions; panic disorder; psychoticism