A review on anxiety disorders during covid-19 pandemic-homoeopathic perspective

The unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic has created havoc in most areas of human lives. Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent psychiatric disorders, and the incidence increased in recent times. Homoeopathy is an alternative system of medicine with evidence-based effectiveness in mental health issues. There is a dearth of literature concerning the potential utility of Homoeopathy in the management of psychological issues during this pandemic.Objectives:This overview aims to assess the commonly prevalent anxiety disorders during Covid-19 and assess the usefulness of homoeopathic medicines in managing anxiety.Materials and methods:Selective literature in PubMed search engine to identify most prevalent anxiety disorders during Covid-19 using terms "Covid-19" and "Anxiety" and available research studies in homoeopathy on anxiety have been put forward in this narrative review.Results:The identified anxiety disorders during Covid-19 and the role of Homoeopathy in managing anxiety disorders have been summarized in the article. The homoeopathic perspective of anxiety and the rubrics related to anxiety disorders in different repertories are discussed.Conclusion:mental health is a critical concern in the pandemic's scenario, and Homoeopathy can be a safe and effective alternative or adjunctive to the conventional system in the management of anxiety disorders during this chaotic situation

Effect of simplified cognitive behavioral therapy on generalized anxiety disorder / 上海交通大学学报（医学版）

Objective • To explore the effect of simplified cognitive behavioral therapy (SCBT) on generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Methods • GAD patients were recruited from Shanghai Hongkou Mental Health Center, Shanghai Putuo Mental Health Center, Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University and Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, who were divided into SCBT group, SCBT+medication group and medication group. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7(GAD-7) was used to assess the patients' generalized anxiety symptoms, Hamilton Anxiety Scale-14(HAMA-14) to assess the patients' anxiety level, and Hamilton Depression Scale-17(HAMD-17) to assess the patients' depression level. SCBT and/or medication were used. Three groups of patients were evaluated by single blind method. Variance analysis and χ2 test were used to compare the cure rate and the severity of anxiety and depression at different time points. Results • A total of 134 cases were included in the statistical analysis, 39 cases in SCBT group, 53 cases in SCBT+medication group, and 42 cases in medication group. There was no significant difference in gender, education level and marital status among the three groups, and there was significant difference in age (P=0.033). The cure rate of SCBT group was higher than those of SCBT+medication group and medication group (P=0.005). The scores of anxiety and depression of the three groups decreased with the prolongation of treatment time. Conclusion • SCBT can effectively alleviate the anxiety and depression symptoms of GAD patients, and has a better prognosis for GAD patients.

A Case of Generalized Anxiety Disorder for Three Years After the Postpartum Period Treated with Kyukichoketsuin / 日本東洋医学雑誌

We report a case of a 39-year-old female who suffered from generalized anxiety disorder for 3 years after a spontaneous abortion and was successfully treated with kyukichoketsuin. She got generalized anxiety disorder and had difficulty to stay in a crowd after she had a spontaneous abortion at the age of 36. She visited our Kampo clinic because of the anxiety at her age of 39. We prescribed her yokukansankachimpihange for 6 months, but she still suffered from anxiety. After we changed yokukansankachimpihange to kyukichoketsuin, her anxiety improved. Kyukichoketsuin is a formula for various kinds of bad conditions during the postpartum period, which was described as the first therapeutic agent in “Manbyokaishun.” In this case, although the patient had suffered from mental disorder for three years after a spontaneous abortion, she showed a favorable response to kyukichoketsuin treatment. This result suggests that kyukichoketsuin may be effective for years of mental problems after parturition.

Diagnosis and Differential Diagnosis of Generalized Anxiety Disorder / 대한정신약물학회지

Although generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a common disorder with significant impairments in clinical field, little is known about exact diagnosis and differential diagnosis. The reasons of little information about diagnosis and differential diagnosis of GAD are 1) changing and vagueness of diagnostic criteria of GAD, 2) multiple medical and psychiatric co-morbidity, 3) atypical presentation of clinical symptoms, 4) patterns of treatment seeking, 5) late introduction of effective treatment modalities. However, GAD is a commonly occurring, independent mental disorder in psychiatry. Recently, the epidemiological and clinical studies on GAD is increasing. For the exact evaluation and to resolve remaining uncertainties on diagnosing the patients with generalized anxiety symptoms, the author reviewed the different diagnostic criteria, the results of epidemiological surveys, clinical characteristics, co-morbidity, differential diagnosis for the exact diagnosis of GAD.

Diagnosis and Differential Diagnosis of Generalized Anxiety Disorder / 대한정신약물학회지

Although generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a common disorder with significant impairments in clinical field, little is known about exact diagnosis and differential diagnosis. The reasons of little information about diagnosis and differential diagnosis of GAD are 1) changing and vagueness of diagnostic criteria of GAD, 2) multiple medical and psychiatric co-morbidity, 3) atypical presentation of clinical symptoms, 4) patterns of treatment seeking, 5) late introduction of effective treatment modalities. However, GAD is a commonly occurring, independent mental disorder in psychiatry. Recently, the epidemiological and clinical studies on GAD is increasing. For the exact evaluation and to resolve remaining uncertainties on diagnosing the patients with generalized anxiety symptoms, the author reviewed the different diagnostic criteria, the results of epidemiological surveys, clinical characteristics, co-morbidity, differential diagnosis for the exact diagnosis of GAD.