The development of panic attacks and social phobia after stroke.

A patient developed panic attacks and social phobia after a stroke. The magnetic resonance imaging scan showed a focal abnormality in the right temporal lobe together with abnormalities extending into the occipital lobe. A pathogenic relationship between the panic attacks and the focal lesion in the temporal lobe is invoked. It is postulated that the temporal-limbic structures and the affiliated frontal-subcortical circuitry may represent the neural substrate for panic disorders.