Anxiety sensitivity as a predictor of the clinical course of panic disorder: a 1-year follow-up study.

Background: There is evidence that negative affect (NA) and anxiety sensitivity (AS) predict the development of anxiety disorders, particularly panic disorder (PD). The main purpose of this study was to examine whether NA and AS will also predict the clinical course of PD.

Methods: Participants were 136 individuals with a DSM-III-R diagnosis of PD (with or without agoraphobia) enrolled in a naturalistic and longitudinal study of anxiety disorders, the Harvard/Brown Anxiety Research Project (HARP).

Use of benzodiazepines and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in middle-aged and older adults with anxiety disorders: a longitudinal and prospective study.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the use of benzodiazepines (BZs) and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors/selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs/SNRIs) over nine years of follow-up in middle-aged and older adults with diagnoses of panic disorder with or without agoraphobia, social phobia, or generalized anxiety disorder.

Setting And Participants: Participants in this study were enrolled in the Harvard/Brown Anxiety Research Project (HARP). HARP is a naturalistic, longitudinal, multisite study of adults with anxiety disorders who are recruited from psychiatric settings.