This ongoing study identifies the prevalence of specific anxiety disorders and the clinical and self-reported functional effects of these disorders in a large sample of Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD) recipients. To date, 143 recipients of ICDs were evaluated using the
Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR Axis I Disorders (SCID)
to establish past and current anxiety disorder diagnoses. These data represent the largest sample of ICD recipients assessed using a structured clinical interview, the gold standard in psychiatric assessment. Self-report questionnaires were also administered to assess anxiety, depression, device-related appraisals, and functional impairment in work, social, and family life.
Participants were 73% White, 80% male, 70% married and 27% currently working with a mean age of 64 (±11.5) years. Seventy shocked and 73 non-shocked ICD recipients were interviewed. History of an anxiety disorder was common. The greatest lifetime prevalence rates were for anxiety disorder due to general medical condition (GMC; 30%) and panic disorder (30%). The most common current anxiety disorders were anxiety disorder due to GMC (24%), generalized anxiety disorder (18%) and panic disorder (14%).
Shocked participants were more likely to receive lifetime diagnoses of anxiety disorder due to GMC (
t
= −2.21, p<.05) and posttraumatic stress disorder (
t
= −2.32, p<.05), as well as current diagnoses of panic disorder (
t
= −2.23, p<.05) and anxiety due to GMC (
t
= −2.42, p<.05). Shocked participants also reported greater worry related to thoughts of receiving a shock (
t
= −4.17, p<.01) and were more likely to report disability and impairment in their work (
t
= −3.02, p<.01), social (
t
= −3.38, p<.001), and family life (
t
= −2.72, p<.01) in comparison to their non-shocked counterparts. No significant differences were found in self-reported symptoms of anxiety or depression between shocked and non-shocked participants.
Findings characterize the extent, nature, and impact of clinical levels of anxiety among ICD recipients, including differences among shocked versus non-shocked individuals. Clinical applications and the development of appropriately tailored interventions will be discussed.