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Treatment typically provided for comorbid anxiety disorders
L S Meredith1, C D Sherbourne, C A Jackson
1RAND Health Program, Santa Monica, Calif., USA.
Archives of Family Medicine
|May 1, 1997
Summary
Comorbid anxiety disorders increase treatment likelihood in general medical settings. Patients with chronic conditions treated by family physicians receive fewer minor tranquilizers compared to those seeing internists or subspecialists.
Area of Science:
- General Medicine
- Psychiatry
- Public Health
Background:
- Anxiety disorders frequently co-occur with chronic medical conditions like hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease.
- Understanding treatment patterns for these comorbid conditions is crucial for effective patient management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate variations in the extent and type of treatment for anxiety disorders in patients with comorbid depression, hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease.
- To compare treatment approaches by general medical clinicians.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of data from 2189 general medical patients in the Medical Outcomes Study.
- Inclusion of patients with and without comorbid anxiety disorders.
- Data collection via clinician reports of counseling and patient reports of medication use.
Main Results:
- Patients with comorbid anxiety disorders were more likely to receive anxiety-specific treatments.
- Psychosocial counseling and psychotropic medication use were higher for anxious patients with depression compared to those with chronic medical conditions alone.
- Minor tranquilizers were more common than antidepressants; usage varied by physician type and patient comorbidities.
Conclusions:
- Co-occurring anxiety disorders with medical illness or depression enhance the likelihood of counseling and psychotropic medication use in primary care.
- Patients with chronic medical conditions visiting family physicians were less likely to use minor tranquilizers than those seeing internists or subspecialists.