Gender Differences in Symptoms of Anxiety Disorders

Anxiety could be described as an abnormal, unsubstantiated condition of fear and uneasiness with accompanying somatic symptoms. Pathological anxiety decision ensues; disproportion in between the level of stimulant and the evolving anxiety, exhibiting an increasing pattern in time instead of a steady or a decreasing one, preponderance of physical symptoms of anxiety in clinical picture, inconvenience of anxiety and functional impairment. Anxiety is both a psychological and a physiological condition with cognitive, somatic, emotional and behavioral components. Anxiety disorders are among the most common psychological disorders (25%). American National Comorbidity Survey data demonstrates a prevalence rate between 19.2% and 30.5%, in male and female genders respectively. Interaction in between biological and psychosocial factors might explain gender differences in anxiety disorders. Gender specific demographical traits should hold a clinician vigilant for comorbidity, symptom representation, severity and different aspects of the disorder. The choice of intervention and gender specific concerns is thus dealt with vigorous anticipation. In this compilation, studies regarding the distribution and differences in symptoms of anxiety disorders according to gender are reviewed. [Archives Medical Review Journal 2013; 22(4.000): 441-459]