ABSTRACT
Childhood anxiety disorders remain vastly under-diagnosed, under-treated and understudied despite their widespread prevalence. If anxiety left untreated children with anxiety disorders are at higher risk to perform poorly in school. The aim of the study is to recognize the prevalence of anxiety, identification of factors influencing development of anxiety and anxiety impact on academic achievement in our community children. One hundred and eighty one preparatory school students, aged 12 to 15 years, of both sex, in governmental urban and rural schools in Port-Said, Egypt, were interviewed for evaluation of the presence of anxiety and its severity using a standard Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale [HARS]. The Socioeconomic index was evaluated according to scoring system, established by Alexandria Health Institute. The average of mid-year and final-year exams' degrees was used as an assessment tool for students' school achievement. Ninety five out of 181 students had anxiety manifestations, representing an incidence of 52.5%. The more the occurrence of anxiety among preparatory school students the less their achievement in all academic subjects. We concluded that anxiety manifestations are prevalent among teens. Anxiety had its clear impact on school achievement. There was a clear linear relationship between severer anxiety and poorer school achievement