Embarrassment about the first panic attack predicts agoraphobia in panic disorder patients

In order to find out whether contextual variables of the first panic attack and the person's reaction to it predict the development of agoraphobia in panic disorder patients, 60 patients with a DSM-III-R diagnosis of panic disorder with agoraphobia and 30 patients suffering from panic disorder without agoraphobia were interviewed about their first panic attack. Single comparisons between groups of agoraphobic and non-agoraphobic patients were carried out and a logistic regression model was applied. Occurrence of the first panic attack in public and the feeling of embarrassment were found to be significantly associated with the development of agoraphobia. It is concluded that eliciting this specific form of social concern at an early stage might help to identify patients at risk for later agoraphobia, which could, in turn, help to further specify early therapeutic interventions and concentrate therapeutic efforts on a high-risk group of panic disorder patients. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.