[Panic attacks and avoidance behavior].

In a crossectional investigation based on a group of 122 patients with panic attacks, compiled from a variety of hospitals and therapy institutions, 97 patients were found to be suffering from panic disorder as a relevant medical problem. The disease, however, is often identified in an unsatisfactory manner. Avoidance behaviour (extensive or limited) associated with a severe form of panic disorder, was evident in more than one-half of the group (60%). In these patients the incidence of panic attacks is higher, anxiety is more marked, and there are more often additional anxiety disorders (generalised anxiety, sociophobia). These results underline the importance of early recognition and specific treatment of panic disorder to prevent development of avoidance behaviour.