PANIC, AVOIDANCE AND THE VESTIBULAR SYSTEM

这项研究涉及患有或不患有广场恐惧症的惊恐障碍， 与强烈的不适和严重的社交相关的情况 丧失工作能力。我们实验室的结果表明 在广场恐惧症和前庭功能受损之间。广场恐惧症患者 显示出更多依赖视觉或本体感觉线索的证据 保持平衡。结果也显示了亚临床异常。 关于焦虑症患者脑干功能的听力学测试 这些异常并不是专门发生在广场恐惧症中的。这个 拟议研究的目的是重复这些发现和 继续在前一个资助期内开始的研究 前庭功能障碍的心身机制。 耳神经功能将在以下诊断中进行研究 分组：(1)惊恐障碍(不复杂)；(3)惊恐障碍伴 广场恐怖症；(3)无广场恐怖症样的非恐慌性焦虑症 回避；(4)健康对照组。每组30名受试者 小组将接受一组临床听力学和前庭检查 测试。正常对照受试者也将接受效果测试。 过度换气对前庭功能的影响。生理的和自我的 将获得前庭测试期间焦虑的报告测量，并 检查与前庭测试结果是否有协变性。的评价者 听力学和前庭测试将对受试者的 诊断。前庭和听力测试的结果将是 检查临床异常发现的流行率。 参数分析将检验不同组之间的系统差异 在整个正常和异常范围内。该研究的结果将 对我们理解这些疾病的发病机制有一定的启示 对疾病和强化治疗的发展作出贡献。

This study concerns Panic Disorder with or without Agoraphobia, conditions associated with intense discomfort and significant social incapacitation. Results from our laboratory indicate an association between agoraphobia and impaired vestibular function. Agoraphobics showed evidence for greater reliance on visual or proprioceptive cues to maintain balance. The results also indicated subclinical abnormalities on audiological test of brainstem function in anxiety disorders, but these abnormalities did not specifically occur in agoraphobia. The purpose of the proposed research is to replicate these findings and continue research begun during the previous funding period examining psychosomatic mechanisms in vestibular dysfunction. Otoneurological function will be studied in the following diagnostic groups: (1) Panic disorder (uncomplicated); (3) Panic disorder with Agoraphobia; (3) Non-panic anxiety disorder without agoraphobia-like avoidance; and (4) healthy Normal controls. Thirty subjects in each group will receive a battery of clinical audiological and vestibular tests. Normal control subjects will also undergo a test for the effect of hyperventilation on vestibular function. Physiological and self- report measures of anxiety during vestibular testing will be obtained and examined for covariation with vestibular test results. The evaluators of the audiological and vestibular tests will be blind as to the subject's diagnoses. The results of the vestibular and audiological tests will be examined with respect to prevalence of clinically abnormal findings. Parametric analysis will test for systematic differences between groups over the entire normal and abnormal range. The results of the study will have implications for our understanding of the pathogenesis of these disorders and to the development of enhanced treatments.