PENTAGASTRIN INDUCED PANIC ATTACKS - ENHANCED SENSITIVITY IN PANIC DISORDER PATIENTS

The effects of pentagastrin, a synthetic analogue of the cholecystokin in tetrapeptide (CCK4), were studied in 15 patients with panic disorde r and 15 healthy controls. Three different intravenous dosages of pent agastrin (0.1, 0.3 and 0.6 mu g/kg) and saline were investigated. Subj ects were randomly allocated to two of the four treatment groups and t ested on two separate occasions, 1 week apart, using an unbalanced dou ble-blind incomplete block design. The mean panic rate with pentagastr in was 55% (12/22) for patients and 5% (1/22) for controls. None of th e subjects panicked with saline. The frequency of panic attacks betwee n the three pentagastrin doses in patients was not different. One cont rol subject had a panic-like attack at the highest dose of pentagastri n. These findings concur with previous studies on the panicogenic effe ct of CCK4 and pentagastrin and suggest a greater sensitivity for CCK receptor agonists in patients suffering from panic disorder than in he althy controls.