Living with anxiety disorders: As good as it gets ...?

The high prevalence of anxiety disorders, along with the high rate of assoc iated comorbidity, lends to significant financial burden and human sufferin g, making early detection and proper intervention a clinical priority for t hese conditions. Despite advances in the understanding and treatment of anx iety disorders, a number of factors diminish the likelihood that people wit h anxiety will benefit from these advances. The authors discuss current iss ues relating to the treatment of anxiety disorders. This review highlights the need for recognition of comorbid conditions, the importance of reducing the high rates of partial treatment response, the importance of being awar e of the common utilization of alternative treatment interventions, and the need to recognize and treat medication-induced sexual dysfunction.