Anxiety, somatic complaints, and depressive symptoms in rural adolescents.

PROBLEM: Undiagnosed and untreated anxiety in adolescents is often associated with greater rates of mood and behavior problems, somatic complaints, and risk for future psychiatric disorders. METHODS. A self-report anxiety instrument was administered as part of a community survey of 466 rural adolescents.

FINDINGS: Anxiety symptoms were strongly correlated with both physical complaints and depression. Females had higher scores for total anxiety and the anxiety subtypes of generalized anxiety disorder, separation anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social phobia, and school phobia.

CONCLUSIONS

Implications for nursing practice are provided.