PHOBIC DISORDERS

3258 randomly selected adult household residents of the city of Edmonton were interviewed by trained lay interviews using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS). Using DMS-III criteria, hierarchy-free, the lifetime prevalence for all phobias was 8.9%. Rates for women (11.7%) were almost twice those for men (6.1%). The age at which first phobic symptoms had been reported by 50% of subjects was 12 years for men and 6 years for women. High rates of comorbidity with depression, alcohol abuse/dependence, drug abuse/dependence and obsessive-compulsive disorder were found in all types of phobia, an important point in clinical management.