Comparison of RDC, DSM-III, DSM-III-R diagnostic criteria for generalized anxiety disorder

Anxiety
S I WolkM M Weissman

Abstract

The diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) has been controversial since its inception. It remains unclear whether more stringent diagnostic criteria, such as in DSM-III-R, have improved the validity of GAD. Family studies suggest that GAD aggregates at least weakly in families of probands with GAD, and support the separation of panic disorder (PD) and GAD. Therefore, we can use a family study design to examine the validity of GAD. Independent familial transmission of GAD supports the validity of GAD. We report here the risk of GAD according to RDC, DSM-III, and DSM-III-R criteria in the first-degree relatives of probands from four diagnostic groups: panic disorder, panic disorder with major depression, early-onset major depression (MDD), and normal controls. We did not find an elevated risk of DSM-III or DSM-III-R GAD in the relatives of any of the ill proband groups compared to the relatives of the never mentally ill when controlling for proband comorbidity for GAD. In contrast, RDC GAD aggregates in the first-degree relatives of probands from both of the PD proband groups (with and without MDD) compared to relatives of the normal control group. The inclusion of cases of subsyndromal panic attacks that did not meet th...Continue Reading

Citations

Feb 19, 2004·European Psychiatry : the Journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists·P Gorwood
Feb 10, 2010·Depression and Anxiety·Susan M BögelsMarisol Voncken
Dec 17, 2009·Australasian Psychiatry : Bulletin of Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists·David Ash, Cherrie Galletly
Jan 27, 2007·The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews·V HunotV Teixeira
Aug 16, 2001·The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease·J M HettemaK S Kendler

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