Suffocation and respiratory response to carbon dioxide in individuals with panic disorder: Implications for etiology

摘要: Studies repeatedly show that individuals with panic disorder (PD) are highly reactive to inhalations of CO 2. However, the reason for this hypersensitivity to CO 2 among PD individuals has not yet been elucidated. Given the primacy of CO 2 in regulating respiratory processes, several investigators have suggested that abnormal processing of CO 2 and related mechanisms that underlie the experience of suffocation may be important in the development and/or maintenance of PD (eg, Gorman et al., 1988, 1989; Klein, 1993). Thus, the purpose of the present study was to examine the relevance of abnormal CO 2 processing in panic. To this end, we compared the response to CO 2 buildup between 40 individuals with PD and 32 healthy controls, using two techniques thought to increase central levels of CO 2 (ie, breathing cessation challenge and the Read rebreathing procedure). We found that, compared with controls …