Association of panic disorder with quality of life among individuals with headache

Abstract

Objective: To study the association of panic disorder with severity of anxiety symptoms and quality of life among individuals presenting with headache.

Methods: This was a single-centre, cross-sectional, observational, questionnaire-based study performed at the psychiatry outpatient department of a tertiary care hospital. Participants of both genders, aged between 18 and 60 years, and having headache as a presenting complaint for at least 3 months were evaluated for symptoms of panic disorder. The severity of headache was evaluated with the visual analogue scale and that of anxiety disorder with the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A). The quality of life was evaluated with the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale brief version. Proportions of participants were compared using Chi-square test, and scores by Mann-Whitney test or Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's post-hoc multiple comparisons.

Results: The frequency of panic disorder among patients with headache was 67%. Those with daily headache and panic disorder (with or without agoraphobia) showed higher HAM-A score and poorer quality of life than those with intermittent headache and without panic disorder, respectively.

Conclusions: Co-morbid panic disorder among patients with headache was associated with high anxiety score and poor quality of life.

Keywords: Anxiety; Headache; Panic disorder; Quality of life.