Sir,According to Priyamvada et al., lifetime prevalence of social phobia (SP) is at least 5%.[1] Recent international experiences are as follows: lifetime prevalence among Nigerian university students was 9.4;[2] one-month prevalence among 914 Swedish elderly individuals was 1.9%;[3] lifetime prevalence among 1,041 residents in Brazil, based on DSM III-R (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Third Edition, Revised), was 7.9 — higher than the 4.7 based on International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10);[4] lifetime prevalence using DSM IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV) diagnostic criteria in 25,180 Iranian adults was 0.82%;[5] in France among 12,873 subjects, the prevalence varied between 1.9% and 7.3%, depending on type of diagnostic algorithms used and stringency of criteria applied;[6] among 850 soldiers in Israel, the prevalence was 4.5% using Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale;[7] and point prevalence among 523 Swedish university students was 16.1%.[8] Typically onset of SP occurs in childhood or adolescence. Twelve-month prevalence of SP among 784 adolescents in Finland was 3.2%;[9] and point prevalence among 2,128 Swedish adolescents was 4.4%.[10
]Indian epidemiological data are inadequate to describe prevalence, impairments, comorbidity and other correlates of SP, based on DSM-IV algorithms.[11] Whatever may be the ratio of prevalence, the total number of persons suffering from SP in hugely populated India must be very large; however, only few people with SP seek professional help for its treatment. If left untreated, SP is usually chronic, unremitting, associated with significant functional impairment and high risk of other comorbid psychiatric disorders — all being detrimental to socioeconomic development. India needs a suitable strategy to treat the maximum number of SP patients in a short time. Recently, due to ease in treatment accessibility and reasonable costs of treatment, interest in self-help programs (e.g., bibliotherapy, tele-health) for common psychological disorders is growing.[12] Internet-delivered cognitive behavioral self-help programs in the form of either pure bibliotherapy; and/or clinician-assisted computerized cognitive behavioral treatments with online group discussions have shown efficacy in SP.[13] With the expansion of internet user base in India, such therapy can be used to generate promising curative effects on social phobia.[14] Full Text in PDF Version