[Panic disorder and antidepressants].

Anxiety disorders, specifically, panic disorder, are the most common mental health disorders. Unless the clinician has a high index of suspicion, panic disorder or social anxiety disorder may remain undetected. Although quality of life(QOL) issues have long been recognized in severe psychiatric disorders, they have only recently come to be considered for the anxiety disorders. While the older tricyclic antidepressants(TCAs) are efficacious in the treatment of theses anxiety disorders, recent studies with paroxetine and other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors(SSRIs) have emphasized the role of serotonin in the aetiology of these conditions. Both the TCA and SSRI antidepressants are effective in treating a wide variety of anxiety disorders. SSRIs, due to their greater safety and tolerability, should be the preferred choices in treating anxiety disorders in those instances.