Online therapy may help people with panic attacks

URL of this page: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_43468.html (*this news item will not be available after 02/04/2007)

Friday, January 5, 2007

By Amy Norton

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Cyber-therapy may offer a new treatment option for people suffering from panic disorder who can't or won't go to a therapist's office, new research suggests.

In a study of 60 adults who experienced panic attacks, researchers found that those who received education and counseling via the Internet and weekly phone calls had a lasting improvement in their symptoms.

Panic disorder is marked by repeated "attacks" of intense fear that come out of nowhere, with physical symptoms such as chest pain, dizziness and shortness of breath. The disorder often goes hand-in-hand with agoraphobia, a fear of being trapped in situations that are out of one's control; people with the condition typically avoid public places and crowds.

Given the nature of the condition, panic disorder patients with agoraphobia are unlikely to attend psychological therapy sessions. The new study, which appears in the American Journal of Psychiatry, suggests that the Internet can provide a way to reach such patients.

"The main idea is to lower the barrier for seeking treatment, so that people who are too afraid to go to a therapist can get treatment despite their inability to travel," explained Dr. Per Carlbring, an associate professor of behavioral sciences at Linkoping University in Sweden.

People who live in rural areas, far from the therapy they need, could benefit as well, according to Carlbring's team. However, in Sweden, he told Reuters Health, the Internet-based approach is also being tested as a potential routine therapy.

For the current study, Carlbring and his colleagues randomly assigned 60 patients to either an Internet-based therapy group or a waiting list for treatment. The treatment group received cognitive behavioral therapy online, through interactive Web pages; at the end of each of 10 educational modules, the patients completed essay questions that were then assessed by their therapist.

They also spoke with the therapist over the phone once a week.

After 10 weeks of therapy, the researchers found, three-quarters of the patients no longer met the diagnostic criteria for panic disorder. Moreover, 9 months later, the patients' improvements were still apparent -- including decreased levels of anxiety, depression and physical symptoms.

In an earlier study of 49 patients, the researchers found that Internet-based therapy appeared as effective as in-person sessions with a therapist. After one year, Carlbring said, 90 percent of all study patients no longer had panic disorder.

SOURCE: American Journal of Psychiatry, December 2006.

Date last updated: 08 January 2007