Clinical-psychophysiological studies of patients with panic attacks with and without agoraphobic disorders.

A total of 77 patients with panic attacks (PA) with and without agoraphobic disorders were studied, along with 28 healthy subjects. Use of clinical-neurological investigation methods was supplemented by psychological methods, EEG recordings, and auditory event-linked evoked potentials (EP). Patients with PA with agoraphobic disorders were found to be characterized by significant decreases in the power density of the alpha rhythm and increases in the power density of the beta rhythm in the right hemisphere, reflecting significant activation of the ascending mesencephalic reticular formation; the most characteristic feature in patients without agoraphobia was a significant increase in the power density of the theta rhythm in the temporal areas of the right hemisphere, reflecting increased activity in temporal-limbic structures. Patients with agoraphobia had lower EP P300 peak amplitudes, with more significant impairments to habituation, and more marked impairments of attention and higher levels of anxiety and depression as compared with patients without agoraphobia.