This study aimed to estimate the association between anxiety associated with COVID‐19 and somatic symptoms, using data from a large, representative sample (N = 2,025) of the UK adult population. ...Results showed that moderate to high levels of anxiety associated with COVID‐19 were significantly associated with general somatic symptoms and in particular with gastrointestinal and fatigue symptoms. This pattern of associations remained significant after controlling for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), pre‐existing health problems, age, gender, and income. This is the first evidence that anxiety associated with COVID‐19 makes a unique contribution to somatization, above and beyond the effect of GAD.
Background
Considerable research links threat‐related attention biases to anxiety symptoms in adults, whereas extant findings on threat biases in youth are limited and mixed. Inconsistent findings ...may arise due to substantial methodological variability and limited sample sizes, emphasizing the need for systematic research on large samples. The aim of this report is to examine the association between threat bias and pediatric anxiety symptoms using standardized measures in a large, international, multi‐site youth sample.
Methods
A total of 1,291 children and adolescents from seven research sites worldwide completed standardized attention bias assessment task (dot‐probe task) and child anxiety symptoms measure (Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders). Using a dimensional approach to symptomatology, we conducted regression analyses predicting overall, and disorder‐specific, anxiety symptoms severity, based on threat bias scores.
Results
Threat bias correlated positively with overall anxiety symptoms severity (ß = 0.078, P = .004). Furthermore, threat bias was positively associated specifically with social anxiety (ß = 0.072, P = .008) and school phobia (ß = 0.076, P = .006) symptoms severity, but not with panic, generalized anxiety, or separation anxiety symptoms. These associations were not moderated by age or gender.
Conclusions
These findings indicate associations between threat bias and pediatric anxiety symptoms, and suggest that vigilance to external threats manifests more prominently in symptoms of social anxiety and school phobia, regardless of age and gender. These findings point to the role of attention bias to threat in anxiety, with implications for translational clinical research. The significance of applying standardized methods in multi‐site collaborations for overcoming challenges inherent to clinical research is discussed.
Abstract Objective To (1) report the prognostic association between anxiety disorder subtypes and major adverse cardiac events (MACE), (2) report anxiety disorder prevalence in coronary heart disease ...(CHD), and (3) report the efficacy of anxiety disorder treatments in CHD. Methods A comprehensive electronic database search was performed in November 2013 for studies reporting anxiety disorder prevalence according to structured interview in CHD samples or MACE, and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing anxiety disorder treatment with placebo or usual care. From 4041 articles 42 samples were selected for extraction (8 for MACE prognosis, 39 for prevalence, no RCTs were eligible). Results Five generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) studies reported 883 MACE events (combined n = 2851). There was a non-significant association between GAD and MACE (risk ratio = 1.20, 95% CI .86–1.68, P = .28) however the effect size was highly significant in outpatient samples (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.94, 95% CI 1.45–2.60, P < .001). No other anxiety disorder subtype was associated with MACE. Prevalence data showed high comorbidity with depression (49.06%; 95% CI 34.28–64.01) and substantial heterogeneity between studies. Panic disorder prevalence was higher in psychiatrist/psychologist raters (9.92% vs. 4.74%) as was GAD (18.45% vs. 13.01%). Panic and GAD estimates were also heterogeneous according to DSM-III-R versus DSM-IV taxonomies. Conclusions The paucity of extant anxiety disorder RCTs, alongside MACE risk for GAD outpatients, should stimulate further anxiety disorder intervention in CHD populations. Research should focus on depression and anxiety, thereby unraveling disorder specific and more generic pathways.
Assessing anxiety in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is inherently challenging due to overlapping (e.g., social avoidance) and ambiguous symptoms (e.g., fears of change). An ASD addendum to the ...Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule-Child/Parent, Parent Version (ADIS/ASA) was developed to provide a systematic approach for differentiating traditional anxiety disorders from symptoms of ASD and more ambiguous, ASD-related anxiety symptoms. Interrater reliability and convergent and discriminant validity were examined in a sample of 69 youth with ASD (8-13 years, 75% male, IQ = 68-143) seeking treatment for anxiety. The parents of participants completed the ADIS/ASA and a battery of behavioral measures. A second rater independently observed and scored recordings of the original interviews. Findings suggest reliable measurement of comorbid (intraclass correlation = 0.85-0.98, κ = 0.67-0.91) as well as ambiguous anxiety-like symptoms (intraclass correlation = 0.87-95, κ = 0.77-0.90) in children with ASD. Convergent and discriminant validity were supported for the traditional anxiety symptoms on the ADIS/ASA, whereas convergent and discriminant validity were partially supported for the ambiguous anxiety-like symptoms. Results provide evidence for the reliability and validity of the ADIS/ASA as a measure of traditional anxiety categories in youth with ASD, with partial support for the validity of the ambiguous anxiety-like categories. Unlike other measures, the ADIS/ASA differentiates comorbid anxiety disorders from overlapping and ambiguous anxiety-like symptoms in ASD, allowing for more precise measurement and clinical conceptualization. Ambiguous anxiety-like symptoms appear phenomenologically distinct from comorbid anxiety disorders and may reflect either symptoms of ASD or a novel variant of anxiety in ASD.
Anxiety disorders, including panic disorder with or without agoraphobia, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, specific phobias, and separation anxiety disorder, are the most ...prevalent mental disorders and are associated with immense health care costs and a high burden of disease. According to large population-based surveys, up to 33.7% of the population are affected by an anxiety disorder during their lifetime. Substantial underrecognition and undertreatment of these disorders have been demonstrated. There is no evidence that the prevalence rates of anxiety disorders have changed in the past years. In cross-cultural comparisons, prevalence rates are highly variable. It is more likely that this heterogeneity is due to differences in methodology than to cultural influences. Anxiety disorders follow a chronic course; however, there is a natural decrease in prevalence rates with older age. Anxiety disorders are highly comorbid with other anxiety disorders and other mental disorders.
Maths anxiety – and how to overcome it Gabriel, Florence
Significance (Oxford, England),
February 2022, 2022-02-01, 20220201, Volume:
19, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Negative feelings about maths create a barrier to learning. In a world awash with numbers this has worrying implications. Florence Gabriel shares the latest thinking on dealing with “maths anxiety”
...Negative feelings about maths create a barrier to learning. In a world awash with numbers this has worrying implications. Florence Gabriel shares the latest thinking on dealing with “maths anxiety”.
Anxiety and depression are prevalent among cancer patients, with significant negative impact. Many patients prefer herbs for symptom relief to conventional medications which have limited ...efficacy/side effects. We identified single‐herb medicines that may warrant further study in cancer patients. Our search included PubMed, Allied and Complementary Medicine, Embase, and Cochrane databases, selecting only single‐herb randomized controlled trials between 1996 and 2016 in any population for data extraction, excluding herbs with known potential for interactions with cancer treatments. One hundred articles involving 38 botanicals met our criteria. Among herbs most studied (≥6 randomized controlled trials each), lavender, passionflower, and saffron produced benefits comparable to standard anxiolytics and antidepressants. Black cohosh, chamomile, and chasteberry are also promising. Anxiety or depressive symptoms were measured in all studies, but not always as primary endpoints. Overall, 45% of studies reported positive findings with fewer adverse effects compared with conventional medications. Based on available data, black cohosh, chamomile, chasteberry, lavender, passionflower, and saffron appear useful in mitigating anxiety or depression with favorable risk–benefit profiles compared to standard treatments. These may benefit cancer patients by minimizing medication load and accompanying side effects. However, well‐designed larger clinical trials are needed before these herbs can be recommended and to further assess their psycho‐oncologic relevance.
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