ATAQUE DE NERVIOS AND PANIC DISORDER

Objective: Ataque de nervios (''attack of nerves'') is art illness cat egory used frequently by Hispanic individuals to describe one or more particular symptom complexes. A review of the literature on ataque sug gested some overlap with Panic disorder. This study investigated the o verlap with panic disorder as well as other DSM-III-R axis I disorders . Method: Hispanic subjects seeking treatment at an anxiety disorders clinic (N=156) were assessed with a specially designed questionnaire f or self-report of ataque de nervios and panic symptoms and with struct ured or semistructured Psychiatric interviews for axis I disorders. Re sults: Seventy percent of the subjects reported at least one ataque de nervios; 80% of these were female, whereas 57% of the group without t hese attacks were female. There were no differences in DSM-III-R diagn oses between the groups with and without ataque de nervios. Ataque was frequently associated with one or more anxiety and affective disorder s, including Panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, recurrent m ajor depression, and anxiety not otherwise specified. Of the 45 subjec ts with both ataque de nervios and primary panic disorder, 80% appeare d to have labeled panic disorder as ataque. Ataque de nervios was asso ciated with panic symptoms even in subjects without panic disorder, bu t the self-reporting of ataque conveyed additional clinical informatio n about the subjects with Panic disorder. Ataque de nervios was simila r in frequency and symptoms among subjects of Dominican and Puerto Ric an origin. Conclusions: Ataque de nervios overlaps with panic disorder but is a more inclusive construct. Further study of its interrelation with axis I disorders is needed.