Prospective follow-up study lasting 2 years in patients with panic disorder with and without depressive disorders

A group of 52 patients presenting at an outpatient unit for anxiety disorders were included consecutively in a prospective 2-year follow-up study. Patients were administered to a structured interview for DSM-III-R diagnoses, a follow-up interview (LIFE), and various other ratings. Sociodemographic and illness-history characteristics, levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms, as well as psychosocial impairment, were evaluated at baseline and follow-up and compared between patients with panic disorder only and patients with panic disorder and concomitant depressive disorders at index assessment. Cross-sectional and longitudinal differences between patients with panic disorder only and patients with panic disorder and concomitant depression have been found, indicating that patients with comorbid conditions are more severely ill and have a less favorable outcome. For the total sample, however, the 2-year outcome was better than that reported in many other follow-up studies.