Early-onset social anxiety disorder in adults: clinical and therapeutic features

Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria

Gabriela Bezerra De Menezes¹  Leonardo F. Fontenelle¹  Márcio Versiani¹ 

[1] ,Federal University of Rio de Janeiro Institute of Psychiatry Anxiety and Depression Program

关键词: Anxiety disorders;    Phobic disorders;    Age of onset;    Absenteeism;    Transtornos de ansiedade;    Transtornos fóbicos;    Idade de início;    Absenteísmo;   

DOI  :  10.1590/S1516-44462005000100009

来源: SciELO

【 摘 要 】

OBJECTIVE: To investigate possible differences in clinical and treatment response in patients suffering from early-onset (< 18 years) and late-onset (>18 years) social anxiety disorder. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with social anxiety disorder of early-onset (n = 47; 75.8%) were compared to those diagnosed with late-onset social anxiety disorder (n = 15; 24.2%) in terms of age, mode of onset, subtype, psychiatric comorbidities (according to the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV), symptom severity and response (assessed according to the Clinical Global Impression scale) after at least ten weeks of drug treatment. The statistical analyses included chi² tests with Yates correction or Fisher's exact test, as well as Student's t-test or Mann-Whitney test. The level of statistic significance adopted was 5%. RESULTS: Patients presenting early-onset phobic symptoms more frequently: were inactive (chi² = 4.28; df = 1; p = 0.04); suffered from the generalized subtype of social phobia (chi² = 6.53; df = 1; p = 0.01); and presented psychiatric comorbidity (chi² = 6.71; df = 1; p = 0.01). No differences were observed between the groups in severity of symptoms and therapeutic response. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest the existence of a possible social anxiety disorder subtype characterized by early onset of symptoms, higher rates of absenteeism, a wider range of social phobia symptoms and psychiatric complications.

【 授权许可】

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