Panic disorder has an overall prevalence rate of 2.1% with higher rates in women. Usually, the treatment includes pharmacotherapy (SSRI) and cognitive-behavioral therapy. But two thirds of the patients have a chronic pattern of evolution, with exacerbations and remissions. That is why we looked for another form of psychotherapy to help patients improve their quality of life.

We evaluated 25 patients (17 female and 8 male), with the mean age of 27.8 years, for 48 weeks. They were treated with paroxetine 20 mg daily for 12 weeks and with weekly sessions of client-centered psychotherapy. They were evaluated with the Covi Anxiety Scale (CAS), the Panic and Agoraphobia Scale (PAS) and the CGIs (CGI-I and CHI-S).

At the beginning of the treatment the next mean values of the whole group were: CAS 12.9, PAS 50.4, CGI-S 5.3. after 12 weeks the mean values were: CAS 6.7, PAS 12.1 and the CGI-I 2. after 24 weeks the mean values were: CAS 4, PAS 4.3 and the CGI-I 1.3. at the end of the study the CGI-I was 1, the CAS 3 and the PAS was zero.

Client-centered psychotherapy is an useful approach in patients with panic disorder.