Evidence for enhanced sensitivity for pentagastrin in panic disorder patients

Abstract

SummaryWe studied the effects of pentagastrin, an analogue of the cholecystokinin tetrapeptide (CCK4), in 15 patients with panic disorder and 15 healthy controls. Three different intravenous dosages of pentagastrin (0.1, 0.3 and 0.6 μ/kg) and placebo (saline) were investigated. Subjects were randomly allocated to two of the four dosage groups and tested on two separate occasions, one week apart, using a double-blind incomplete block design. A total of 59 intravenous injections were carried out. The panic rate with pentagastrin, irrespective of the dosage, was 55% (12/22) for patients and 5% (1/22) for controls. None of the subjects panicked with saline. The frequency of panic attacks between the three pentagastrin doses in patients was not different. One control subject had a panic-like attack at the highest dose of pentagastrin. These findings concur with previous studies on the panicogenic effect of CCK4 and pentagastrin and suggest a greater sensitivity for CCK agonists in patients suffering from panic disorder than in healthy controls.