THE LIFETIME PREVALENCE OF ANXIETY DISORDERS IN ICELAND AS ESTIMATED BY THE UNITED-STATES NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL-HEALTH DIAGNOSTIC INTERVIEW SCHEDULE

The lifetime prevalence of anxiety disorders was estimated in a study of the prevalence of mental disorders in Iceland. The survey instrumen t was an Icelandic translation of the US National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule. The cohort consisted of one half of those born in the year 193 1. The participation rate was 79.3%. Th e overall prevalence of anxiety disorders was 44%, with phobia effecti ng 18%. The most common anxiety disorder was generalized anxiety, whic h had a prevalence of 22% and was more common among women. Simple phob ia was the most common of the phobic disorders (8.8%), followed by ago raphobia without panic (3.8%), and social phobia (3.5%) The female-mal e ratio for anxiety disorders was 2:1. Of those with simple phobia, th e most common items were a fear of heights (41%); claustrophobia (34%) ; being on public transportation (31%); the fear of being in crowds an d speaking in front of others (28%); of being alone (24%); of insects (22%); of bad weather (21%); and of being in water (aquaphobia) (20%). In addition, 17% of the respondents listed phobias not cited in the D SM-III, and of those with the most common phobic disorder, only 9% had consulted a physician because of this condition. Post-traumatic stres s disorder was found to affect women exclusively. Comorbidity shows a mean of at least 3 additional diagnoses.