Panic Disorder
- Panic Attack
- Panic Disorder
- Recurrent Panic Attacks
- Anticipatory Anxiety
- Agoraphobia
- Hypochondriasis
- Demoralisation
- Epidemiology
- Age of Onset
- Situation of Onset
- Stressful Life Events
- Early Life Events
- Maternal Over-Protection
- Separation Anxiety
- Short and Long-term Outcomes
- Comorbidity
- Panic Disorder: Pathogenesis
- Biological Findings
- Provocative Agents
- Neurotransmitter Systems
- Neuroanatomical Models
- Brain Imaging
- Psychological Models
- Psychodynamic Models
- Behavioural Models
- Cognitive Models
- Areas of Controversy and Debate
- The Evolutionary Perspective
- Panic Disorder: Treatment
- Pharmacotherapy
- Benzodiazepines
- Tricyclic Antidepressants
- Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors
- Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors
- Other Drugs
- Psychotherapy
Age Anxiety Disorder Onset
The age of onset for PD varies considerably, but most typically is the early to mid-twenties, with later onset in West Germany (age at onset, 35.5 years) and Korea (age at onset, 32.1 years). In clinical samples the mean age of onset is around 25 years: the total estimated prevalence of panic attacks and PD is greatest in people aged 15–24 years. The association with age seems to differ by sex . For men, the highest rates for both panic attacks and PD are in the lowest age group, but for women, the peak is in the age range of 35–44 for attacks. The pattern for both men and women suggests a bimodal distribution: the early mode for panic disorder is in the same age range of 15–24 for both and the later mode occurs in the age range of 45–54. A small number of cases begin during childhood. In about 15% of the patients the age of onset is after age 40.
The strikingly higher risk of panic disorder in relatives of probands with PD onset at or before 20 years of age suggests that age at onset may be useful in differentiating familial subtypes of PD and that genetic studies of panic disorder should consider age at onset . Whereas PD without agoraphobia prevails during the late twenties, PD with agoraphobia most frequently develops during the early twenties.