Failure of glucagon-like peptide-1 to induce panic attacks or anxiety in patients with panic disorder

Abstract

The insulin secretogogue glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1), as well as agents which enhance GLP-1 signaling, are being studied as potential treatments for diabetes. Pre-clinical evidence suggests that these agents may have neuropsychiatric side effects; however, there have been no investigations or reports of these effects in humans. We evaluated possible anxiogenic and panicogenic properties of GLP-1 in 9 healthy subjects (age 47 ± 8 years) and 7 patients with panic disorder (age 38 ± 17 years) using a single-blinded intravenous GLP-1 challenge (2 pmol/kg/min over 60 min). We assessed the occurrence of panic attacks during and after GLP-1 infusion and the emergence of anxiety or panic symptoms using the Acute Panic Inventory (API). No patient or healthy subject experienced any panic attacks at any point during this study. Moreover, there were no significant changes in API scores following the infusion in either group. These data suggest that in humans, intraveneously administered GLP-1 does not appear to have anxiogenic or panicogenic properties, even in patients at highest risk for such reactions.