Anxiety disorder

1. Anxiety disorders: Benzodiazepines are effective for the treatment of the anxiety symptoms secondary to panic disorder,(GAD), social anxiety disorder, performance anxiety,ptsd,ocd, and anxiety associated with specific phobias such as fear of flying. The benzodiazepines are also useful in treating the anxiety that accompanies some forms of depression and schizophrenia. These drugs should not be used to alleviate the normal stress of everyday life. They should be reserved for continued severe anxiety, and then should only be used for short periods of time because of their addiction potential. The longer-acting agents,such as clonazepam, lorazepam, and diazepam, are often preferred in those patients with anxiety who may require treatment for prolonged periods of time. The anti-anxiety effects of the benzodiazepines are less subject to tolerance than the sedative and hypnotic effects. [Note: Tolerance (that is, decreased responsiveness to repeated doses of the drug) occurs when used for more than 1 to 2 weeks. Cross-tolerance exists among this group of agents with ethanol. It has been shown that tolerance is associated with a decrease in GABA-receptor density.] For panic disorders, alprazolam is effective for shortand long-term treatment, although it may cause withdrawal reactions in about 30 percent of sufferers.