Neuroelectrical activity related to panic disorder.

1. Quantitative electroencephalographic activity (EEG), together with bioelectric measures of the peripheral nervous system, provide us with unique non-invasive tools for investigating neurobiological issues relating to panic disorder. 2. During recordings of non-panic states, patients with panic disorder exhibit a desynchrony in autonomic vs. somatic arousal levels and also display significant EEG correlations with self-reported anxiety which are not apparent in control subjects. 3. Recordings concomitant with self-reported anxiety/panic during lactate infusions are associated with increased autonomic and somatic arousal and a paradoxical increase in slow wave EEG activity. 4. EEG recordings throughout a lactate challenge indicate that slow wave activity associated with panic does not appear to be characterized by an abrupt, sudden onset but tends to increase gradually throughout the infusion, a finding which is in disaccord with the 'spontaneity' view of panic.