Comorbidity in generalized anxiety disorder: Impact and implications

Studying comorbidity may be particularly useful in shedding light on the na ture, course, and management of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). This ar ticle reviews the common comorbidities in GAD, their impact on functioning and on medical utilization, and their implications for treatment. Comorbidi ty in this area is complex in that GAD may be primary (predating other illn esses) or secondary (following other conditions). Nevertheless, studies dem onstrate the high prevalence of patients with a matrix of anxious-somatic-d epressive symptoms and show that GAD comorbidity is associated with both in creased disability and increased medical utilization. Clinical implications of this work include the need for rigorous assessment of anxiety, somatic, and depressive symptoms in patients who present with any one of these sets of complaints and the possibility that early treatment of GAD may be criti cal in preventing subsequent morbidity.