Panic and depressive disorders among psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents

Sixty-one adolescents hospitalized on an inpatient psychiatric unit were evaluated to determine whether they met criteria for panic and affective disorders according to Research Diagnostic Criteria. Ten (16%) and 15 (24%) met criteria for definite or possible panic disorder. Fifteen (24.5%) had major depressive disorder (MDD) endogenous subtype, 10 (16%) had MDD nonendogenous subtype, 8 (13%) had minor depressive disorder (mDD), and 27 (44%) had no diagnosable mood disorder. Four adolescents with definite panic disorders were diagnosed as having MDD endogenous subtype, three MDD, two mDD, and one had no diagnosable depressive disorder. The mean total score on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) was significantly higher among those subjects with definite panic attacks compared with those with either possible or no panic. Patients with definite panic disorder showed significant increases on the HRSD items of guilt, decreased work and interest, psychological and somatic anxiety, and weight loss compared to these samples.