We sought to identify predictors of being told the diagnosis of panic by health care providers and to assess whether being told affected outcomes. We collected data about care-seeking behavior, panic and family characteristics, psychiatric comorbidity, and illness behaviors. Outcomes included psychiatric symptomatology, disability, substance use, and control. Presentation to an emergency department and the number of mental health sites used predicted being told. Patient predictors centered on symptom severity. Being told was not associated with outcomes. Hence, care-seeking from emergency departments and mental health sites as well as symptom severity predicted being told but not better outcomes.

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The purpose of this study was to document the association between community factors and mental health outcomes in subjects with panic attacks. Randomly selected adults from 18 census tracts were screened for the presence of panic attacks. A structured interview was used to assess health care utilization, psychiatric morbidity, quality of life, and sense of control over panic. Community measures were obtained from census data. Regression analyses found that each community measure was associated with at least one outcome even when adjusted for individual socioeconomic status and barriers to access. Research concerning mental health outcomes in subjects with panic attacks should include community-level data.