In their editorial, Dr. Katon and Dr. Roy-Byrne praised the study, but noted that "the authors did not make statistical adjustments to control for the higher prevalence of comorbid major depression and medical disorders in patients with anxiety disorders versus those without. However, other researchers have found that anxiety disorders are associated with statistically significant decrements in function after statistically controlling for depression and medical comorbidity."
They also pointed out, as did Dr. Kroneke and colleagues, that the patients in the sample were recruited rather than randomly selected, which could lead to overrepresentation of patients with anxiety disorders, working under the assumption that such patients might be more likely to attend clinic frequently.
| The study was supported by a grant from Pfizer Inc. Dr, Kroenke is a consultant to and has received grants from the company. Co-authors Janet B.W. Williams, D.S.W, Robert L, Spitzer, M.D., and Bernd Löwe, M.D. have also received grants from Pfizer. |
Primary source: Annals of Internal Medicine
Source reference: Kroenke K et al. "Anxiety Disorders in Primary Care: Prevalence, Impairment,
