These drugs were better tolerated than tricyclics and benzodiazepines as they had a low risk of dependence and overdosing complications .
The serotonergic , noradrenergic and GABAergic pathways play a major role in the fear network and in the physiopathology of PD .
INTRODUCTION Panic disorder ( PD ) is a prevalent psychiatric disorder characterized by unexpected and recurrent panic attacks .
PD patients present significant psychosocial impairment and a high risk of psychiatric comorbidities and suicide .
PD should be treated effectively as soon as the symptoms emerge because the longer these patients remain without treatment , the worse the prognosis will be .
SSRIs and SNRIs are the first-line compounds in the treatment of PD .
A three-year follow-up study of patients with the respiratory subtype of panic disorder after treatment with clonazepam
The demographic , clinical and therapeutic features of the respiratory subtype of panic disorder ( PD ) versus the non-respiratory subtype were studied in a prospect i ve design . Sixty-seven PD out patients ( DSM-IV ) , who had previously been categorized into respiratory ( n=35 ) and non-respiratory ( n=32 ) subgroups , were openly treated with clonazepam for a 3-year period . The principal measure of efficacy was the number of panic attacks , obtained from the Sheehan Panic and Anticipatory Anxiety Scale . In the first 8 weeks of treatment ( acute phase ) , the respiratory subtype group had a significantly faster response to clonazepam . During the follow-up ( weeks 12 - 156 ) , the two subgroups did not differ significantly in the number of panic attacks experienced from baseline to end point . Patients in the respiratory subtype were characterized by a later onset of disorder and a family history of PD . Patients in the non-respiratory subgroup had a significantly higher number of past depressive episodes than those in the respiratory subgroup . The respiratory subgroup had a faster response after 8 weeks of treatment and an equivalent response in the 3-year follow-up period . Clonazepam had a sustained therapeutic effect over the entire treatment period
These drugs were better tolerated than tricyclics and benzodiazepines as they had a low risk of dependence and overdosing complications .
The serotonergic , noradrenergic and GABAergic pathways play a major role in the fear network and in the physiopathology of PD .
INTRODUCTION Panic disorder ( PD ) is a prevalent psychiatric disorder characterized by unexpected and recurrent panic attacks .
PD patients present significant psychosocial impairment and a high risk of psychiatric comorbidities and suicide .
PD should be treated effectively as soon as the symptoms emerge because the longer these patients remain without treatment , the worse the prognosis will be .
SSRIs and SNRIs are the first-line compounds in the treatment of PD .