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Postpartum onset of panic disorder: a coincidental event?
D E Sholomskas1, P J Wickamaratne, L Dogolo
1Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, Guilford, CT 06437.
Background:
This study investigated whether the onset of panic for the first time during the postpartum period represented a coincidental occurrence.
Method:
Sixty-four childbearing women diagnosed with panic disorder who had been treated at the Yale Anxiety Research Clinic were interviewed. Postpartum panic was defined as the first panic occurring within 12 weeks of the woman's first childbirth.
Results:
Seven women (10.9%) met criteria for postpartum onset, which is significantly greater than the expected age-corrected percentage of 0.92%, Z = 2.29, p < .02.
Conclusion:
The onset of panic in the first postpartum period is not a coincidental event.