ABC of psychological medicine: Anxiety in medical patients

doi:10.1136/bmj.325.7357.207

BMJ 2002;325:207-209 ( 27 July )

Clinical review

ABC of psychological medicine

Anxiety in medical patients

Allan House, Dan Stark.

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Doctors often consider anxiety to be a normal response to physical illness. Yet, anxiety afflicts only a minority of patientsand tends not to be prolonged. Any severe or persistent anxiousresponse to physical illness merits further assessment.

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What is anxiety?

Anxiety is a universal and generally adaptive response to a threat, but in certain circumstances it can become maladaptive.Characteristics that distinguish abnormal from adaptive anxietyinclude

Anxiety out of proportion to the level of threat

Persistence or deterioration without intervention (> 3 weeks)

Symptoms that are unacceptable regardless of the level of threat, including
Recurrent panic attacks
Severe physical symptoms
Abnormal believes such as thoughts of sudden death

Disruption of usual or desirable functioning

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Anxiety out of proportion to the level of threat
Persistence or deterioration without intervention (>3weeks)
Symptoms that are unacceptable regardless of the level of threat, including
Recurrent panic attacks
Severe physicalsymptoms
Abnormal beliefs such as . . . [Full text of this article]

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