Low Health Anxiety Research Articles

Exercise and Health Anxiety in Older Women: Exploring the Mediating Role of Anxiety Sensitivity.

Research shows that health anxiety significantly affects older adults' health and quality of life. Although exercise may be associated with lower health anxiety, research on older adults is limited, and the mechanism remains unknown. This study examined the association between exercise and health anxiety in older women and the mediating role of anxiety sensitivity in this association. Participants were 166 women aged 65+years, without health problems that prevented them from exercising. Participants were recruited via Facebook advertisements. They completed an online self-report questionnaire including measures of health anxiety, physical activity, and anxiety sensitivity. The SPSS PROCESS macro was used to examine the association between exercise and health anxiety, and the role of anxiety sensitivity as a mediator. Results indicated that greater participation in exercise was associated with lower health anxiety, and anxiety sensitivity mediated the association. Findings suggest that exercise-based interventions might prevent health anxiety in older adults.

Association Between Family History of Diabetes, Irrational Beliefs, and Health Anxiety with 10-Year Risk of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: the ATTICA Epidemiological Study (2002–2012)

BackgroundThis study aimed to examine the relationship between family history of diabetes, irrational beliefs, and health anxiety in the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).MethodATTICA is a prospective, cohort study (2002–2012). The working sample included 845 participants (18–89 years), free of diabetes at baseline. Α detailed biochemical, clinical, and lifestyle evaluation was performed, while participants’ irrational beliefs and health anxiety were assessed through the Irrational Beliefs Inventory and the Whiteley index scale, respectively. We evaluated the association between the participants’ family history of diabetes mellitus with the 10-year risk of diabetes mellitus, both in the total study’s sample and separately according to their levels of health anxiety and irrational beliefs.ResultsThe crude 10-year risk of T2DM was 12.9% (95%CI: 10.4, 15.4), with 191 cases of T2DM. Family history of diabetes was associated with 2.5 times higher odds (2.53, 95%CI 1.71, 3.75) of T2DM compared to those without family history. Among participants with family history of diabetes, the highest likelihood of developing T2DM, regarding their tested psychological features (i.e., low/high irrational beliefs in the entire group, low/high health anxiety in the entire group, and low/high irrational beliefs, low/high healthy anxiety), had people with high irrational beliefs, low health anxiety (OR 3.70, 95%CI 1.83, 7.48).ConclusionsThe findings underline the important moderating role of irrational beliefs and health anxiety in the prevention of T2DM, among participants at increased risk of T2DM.

COVID-19 Salgınında Sağlık Anksiyetesi ve Ölüm Anksiyetesi Düzeylerine Sosyodemografik Değişkenlerinin Etkisi

The aim of this study was to evaluate health anxiety and death anxiety levels in adult cases during the COVID-19 pandemic and to evaluate the effect of sociodemographic variables. In this online study, 334 patients over the age of 18 were included. Health Anxiety Scale, Death Anxiety Scale and Sociodemographic Data Form were used in the research. The subscales of health anxiety showed a meaningful correlation between hypersensitivity to bodily findings and negative consequences of the disease and death anxiety. Death anxiety and health anxiety were found to be higher in women. It is statistically significant that health anxiety is more common in individuals aged 20-30 years and women with primary education degrees. Death anxiety was found to be associated with low socioeconomic status and health anxiety was associated with average socioeconomic status. Death anxiety was found to be associated with two of the health anxiety subscales. Sociodemographic variables such as age, gender, educational status and socioeconomic status are thought to be effective in both death anxiety and health anxiety.

The role of base-rate neglect in cyberchondria and health anxiety

Cyberchondria is characterized by excessive health-related online search behavior associated with an unfounded escalation of concerns about common symptomatology. It often co-occurs with health anxiety. We investigated whether base-rate neglect–the cognitive bias to ignore a priori probabilities (e.g., of serious diseases)–plays a significant role in cyberchondria and health anxiety. 368 participants were randomly assigned to eight experimental conditions, manipulating the base-rate (30 % vs. 70 %), the judgment domain (health-neutral versus health-related), and the salience of base-rate information (low vs. high) in a 2×2×2 between-subjects design when asking them for probability judgments with versus without disease relevance. We found that high salience decreased base-rate neglect in participants with low, but not in those with elevated levels of either cyberchondria or health anxiety. Under low salience conditions, however, both cyberchondria and health anxiety severity were uncorrelated with base-rate neglect. These effects were independent of whether health-related or health-neutral problems were evaluated. Our findings suggest a domain-general probabilistic reasoning style that may play a causal role in the pathogenesis of cyberchondria and health anxiety.

Determination of Health Anxiety and Resilience Levels in Patients with Fibromyalgia Syndrome and Rheumatoid Arthritis During SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: A Case-Control Study.

Fibromyalgia Syndrome and Rheumatoid Arthritis are chronic diseases associated with pain. These diseases reduce the patient's quality of life and cause psychological problems. The study aimed to determine health anxiety and resilience levels in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis during the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 pandemic. This case-control study conducted in Central Anatolia Region, Turkey, included 180 participants (60 patients with fibromyalgia syndrome, 60 patients with rheumatoid arthritis, and 60 healthy subjects). Data were collected using the Brief Resilience Scale and Health Anxiety Scale. Pain intensity was assessed using the Visual Analog Scale. Resilience was significantly higher in healthy controls than in the fibromyalgia syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis groups (P < .001). Resilience was also higher in the rheumatoid arthritis group than fibromyalgia syndrome (P < .001) group. Hypersensitivity to somatic symptoms and anxiety, negative results of diseases, and total scores of Health Anxiety Scale were significantly higher in the fibromyalgia syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis groups than healthy controls (P < .001). Also, Health Anxiety Scale scores in the fibromyalgia syndrome group were higher than the rheumatoid arthritis group (P < .001). There was a very strong and negative correlation between the participants' resilience and health anxiety levels (r = -0.818, P < .001). The most important predictors of resilience were hypersensitivity to somatic symptoms and anxiety (r = -0.335, P < .001), the group (r = 0.302, P = .003), the pain intensity (r = -0.169, P = .043), and the negative consequences of the disease (r = -.149, P = .038). The hypersensitivity to somatic symptoms and anxiety, the Visual Analog Scale, and the negative consequences of the disease were negatively correlated with resilience. But there was a positive correlation between fibromyalgia syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis groups and resilience. Patients with fibromyalgia syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis have low resilience and high health anxiety. The interventions should be planned to increase resilience and decrease the health anxiety of patients with fibromyalgia syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis.

ПРЕДСТАВЛЕНИЯ О ХИМИОТЕРАПИИ И ЛУЧЕВОЙ ТЕРАПИИ У ПАЦИЕНТОВ С ОНКОЛОГИЧЕСКИМИ ЗАБОЛЕВАНИЯМИ: ОЖИДАНИЯ И СУБЪЕКТИВНОЕ БЛАГОПОЛУЧИЕ

Objective. Knowledge, expectations and fears about chemotherapy and radiation therapy for cancer, aff ecting the subjective well-being and emotional condition of patients, may indirectly aff ect treatment satisfaction and complaints of side eff ects. Th e aim was to compare treatment representations in patients referred to radiation therapy and chemotherapy, and to identify its relationship with health anxiety and subjective well-being. Methods and participants. 53 patients referred to radiation therapy and 63 patients referred to chemotherapy completed the Scale of Treatment Representation in Oncological Diseases, Illness and Treatment Self-Regulation Questionnaire, Satisfaction with Life Scale and Scale of Positive and Negative Experiences. Results. According to the results, the key diffi culties with regard to radiation therapy in patients are a lack of understanding of treatment process and a general concern about the need for it. Compared to radiation therapy, with chemotherapy, patients tend to be more doubtful about the eff ectiveness of treatment and more anxious about the need for it. Moderated mediation analysis demonstrated that lack of understanding, doubts about the eff ectiveness and anxiety about radiation and chemotherapy are associated with subjective ill-being indirectly — through a higher level of health anxiety. Conclusions. Feelings of helplessness with regard to treatment mediated the relationship between doubts and confi dence about treatment eff ectiveness and well-being in both groups. With radiation therapy, confi dence in the need for treatment was indirectly associated with better well-being — through lower health anxiety.

The role of health anxiety in healthcare management transition and health-related quality of life in young adults with medical conditions

ABSTRACT Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with a chronic medical condition (CMC) are tasked with independent health care management transition. However, the role of health anxiety in care management is unclear. The present study evaluated whether health anxiety moderates transition readiness-to-health-related quality of life (HRQoL). College students (N = 135) completed cross-sectional surveys of demographics, health anxiety, transition readiness, and HRQoL. Analyses revealed interaction effects for health anxiety and transition readiness on HRQoL outcomes. For lower health anxiety, greater transition readiness was associated with greater HRQoL. Therefore, examining health anxiety in AYAs transitioning care may relate to long-term HRQoL outcomes.

Hubungan Kecemasan Kesehatan dengan Ketakutan terhadap COVID-19 pada Remaja Akhir di Jakarta

The pandemic situation has an impact, namely health anxiety and fear of COVID-19 which is felt in the community, one of which is adolescents. Negative emotions will have an effect on suppressing the immune response thereby reducing immunity (Kemeny, 2007; Seiler et al., 2020). This will certainly worsen the situation of the COVID-19 pandemic. Most cases of COVID-19 in Indonesia occur in Jakarta Province, so this study looks at the health crisis and fear of COVID-19 in 300 late adolescents in Jakarta and looks at the relationship between the two variables. This study uses a clustered on stratified sampling technique. Data collection for this study was carried out 9 months after it was decided that COVID-19 was a global pandemic. The method used in this study is a correlational technique. The results of this study found that late adolescents in Jakarta tend to have low health anxiety, namely 70.3% of participants (n = 211), but different from the high fear of COVID-19, which is 74% of participants (n = 222). The results of this study obtained data that health anxiety has a positive correlation with fear of COVID-19 (r = 0.225, p-value = 0.000). Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that health anxiety in late adolescents in Jakarta has a weak relationship with fear of COVID-19.

Low self-efficacy increases the odds of elevated post-operative pain following hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome.

Low mental health scores, depression, and anxiety are associated with worse pain and functional outcomes following hip arthroscopy for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FAIS). Pre-operative screening of psychosocial factors such as pain catastrophizing, self-efficacy, and kinesiophobia may further aid in identifying patients at-risk for poorer outcomes. Compare pre-operative function and psychosocial factors between patients with and without elevated post-operative pain three-months following hip arthroscopy for FAIS. Prospective cohort Setting: University health center Participants: 51 individuals with FAIS (41F/10M; age:37.6±12.3years; BMI:27.1±4.1kg/m2) Outcome measures: Pre-operatively participants completed the Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ), Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK), Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), 12-Item International Hip Outcome Tool (iHOT-12), and a 10-point visual analog scale (VAS) for hip pain at rest and during activity. Three-months post-operatively, participants completed the PSEQ, TSK, PCS, iHOT-12 and VAS. Pre-operative scores were compared between those with (VAS≥3) and without (VAS<3) elevated post-operative pain using Mann-Whitney U tests, and odds ratios were calculated to determine the odds of having elevated post-operative pain and lower post-operative function. Participants with elevated post-operative pain at rest and during activity had worse pre-operative psychosocial health (p≤0.04). Those with elevated pain at rest had worse pre-operative function (p≤0.001). The odds of having elevated post-operative pain at rest were 45 times and 4.5 times higher for those with low self-efficacy and high pain catastrophizing (p≤.03).

Health anxiety and related factors among pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study from Iran

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has affected many countries around the world and Iran was no exception. The aim of this study was to evaluate health anxiety of Iranian pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, 300 pregnant women in different trimesters (n = 100 in each trimester) were recruited. A demographic questionnaire and the Health Anxiety Questionnaire were used to collect data. Scores of < 27, 27–34 and more than 35 were defined as low, moderate and high health anxiety, respectively. Due to nationwide restrictions, data were collected through social media groups. Chi-square tests, ANOVA and multiple linear regression were used to analyze the data.ResultsMean (SD) total anxiety scores were 22.3 ± 9.5, 24.6 ± 9.3 and 25.4 ± 10.6 in the first, second and third trimesters of pregnancy, respectively. 9, 13 and 21% of women had severe anxiety in the first, second and third trimesters of pregnancy, respectively. Women in the third trimester had significantly higher health anxiety scores than those in the first trimester (p = 0.045).ConclusionAt the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, women in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy were more worried about consequences of disease, but total health anxiety scores were significantly higher among women in the third trimester of pregnancy. Health care providers should pay more attention to the mental health of pregnant women in times of crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

The role of health anxiety in the experience of perceived stress across the menstrual cycle

ABSTRACT Background: Hormonal variation throughout the menstrual cycle influences physiological and psychological symptoms, although not for all women. Individual differences in health anxiety (HA) might help to explain the differences in physiological and psychological symptoms and perceived stress observed across women. Design: We examined the moderating role of HA in the relation between menstrual phase and premenstrual symptom severity and perceived stress. Methods: A total of 38 women completed visits in both late luteal and follicular phases, with visit order randomized. Menstrual phase was verified using day-count, a luteinizing hormone test, and progesterone assay. Results: Linear mixed models revealed that women experienced more premenstrual symptoms during the late luteal phase vs. the follicular phase; however, HA did not moderate this effect. There was a significant HA × menstrual cycle phase interaction for perceived stress. During the late luteal phase, women with higher HA reported greater perceived stress compared to women with lower HA. In the follicular phase, women with higher and lower HA reported similar levels of perceived stress. Conclusion: Higher levels of HA may play a role in the experience of perceived stress in specific phases of the menstrual cycle.

Continuity of health anxiety from childhood to adolescence and associated healthcare costs: a prospective population-based cohort study.

Severe health anxiety (HA) is characterized by excessive and impairing worry and preoccupation with health issues and can cause increased and unnecessary medical examinations. HA in childhood and adolescence is scarcely explored, hindering the potential for prevention and early intervention. HA was assessed in 1,278 children/youths at two time points at ages 11 and 16years in a general population-based birth cohort. Register-based data on costs related to nonhospital-based primary and secondary somatic health services were obtained over the follow-up period. The presence of functional somatic symptoms, emotional disorders and chronic somatic illness at baseline were included as covariates. High HA (top 10% score) at age 11 predicted high HA at age 16 (relative risk [RR] 2.03, 95% CI: 1.26-3.31). The group with persistent HA was small (n=17, 1.3%), resulting in broad confidence intervals. The statistical effect of HA at age 11 on HA at age 16 was heavily reduced after adjustment for sex and all covariates (RR: 1.49, 95% CI: 0.85-2.60). In the adjusted model, somatic illness at age 11 (RR: 1.91, 95% CI: 1.22-2.98) and female sex (RR: 3.33, 95% CI: 2.01-5.50) were independently associated with HA at age 16. Persistent HA was associated with approximately doubled healthcare costs compared to the group with consistently low HA. Incident HA at age 16 was associated with increased costs over follow-up. The increased costs were not explained by chronic somatic illness. A small subgroup of children had persistent high levels of HA from late childhood to adolescence and displayed increased healthcare costs. Female sex and chronic somatic disorders at age 11 were independent risk factors of HA at age 16. These findings provide potential means of early identification and of therapeutic levers. Further intervention development and evaluation are needed.

Quantitative assessment of anxiety about their health in patients with first-ever stroke

Excessive health anxiety is frequent post-stroke psychopathological syndrome that remains understudied.&#x0D; Aim. Quantitative assessment of health anxiety by Whiteley Index as well as it`s relation to psychiatric and somatic disorders.&#x0D; Methods. This study is a part of prospective observational study of patients with first-ever stroke. 53 patients (mean age 60.211.8 years, 37% female) were assessed by Whiteley Index: 35 patients in 14 day of stroke, 32 at 6. Month of post-stroke period, 14 in both time-points. Borderline health anxiety was diagnosed in patients with score 3244, excessive health anxiety with score more than 44.&#x0D; Results. Patients were divided into 5 groups: with low health anxiety (n=19), with borderline health anxiety (n=14), with high health anxiety (n=15), with lowering score (n=3) and with increasing score (n=3). Increased health anxiety was associated with bigger stroke volume, executive dysfunction, with larger number of habitual anxiety reactions and anxiety-related motor, ideational and vegetative symptoms as well as with uncontrollable hypertension in post-stroke period. Excessive health anxiety didn`t relate to increased frequency of generalized anxiety disorder and fear of stroke recurrence.&#x0D; Conclusion. Although increased health anxiety is understandable psychological reaction to stroke, it has some pathological correlates: with increased habitual anxiety and vegetative lability, bigger lesion volume and executive dysfunction.

Self-esteem and cyberchondria: The mediation effects of health anxiety and obsessive\u2013compulsive symptoms in a community sample

Cyberchondria refers to the excessive and repeated searching for medical information on the Internet and may be considered as health-related problematic Internet use. Previous findings indicated that cyberchondria is positively associated with health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms. Also, research suggests that excessive or problematic Internet use as well as health worries and compulsive behaviors are present among individuals with low self-esteem. This study sought to examine: (1) the association between self-esteem and cyberchondria, and (2) the mediating role of health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms in the relationship between self-esteem and cyberchondria. Participants (N = 207) from a community sample completed self-report measures assessing global self-esteem, health anxiety, obsessive–compulsive symptoms, and cyberchondria. We found that self-esteem directly predicted cyberchondria and that health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms parallelly mediated the relationship between self-esteem and cyberchondria. These findings suggest that low self-esteem, health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms can be considered vulnerability factors for cyberchondria. In addition, the reverse mediation model indicated that cyberchondria potentially predicts self-esteem both directly and through health anxiety and obsessive–compulsive symptoms. The bidirectional relationship among the analyzed variables are discussed in the context of potential psychological predictors and consequences of cyberchondria and possible mechanisms explaining cyberchondria. The current study provides further insight into the conceptualization of cyberchondria and the feasibility of specific treatment directions.

The impact of health anxiety on perceptions of personal and children's health in parents with Lynch syndrome.

This study examined the differences in perceptions of one's health and one's child's health between parents with Lynch syndrome (LS) characterized with high versus low health anxiety. Twenty-one parents completed semistructured telephone interviews about their perceptions of their own health and the health of their children. Qualitative content analysis using a template coding approach examined the differences between parents with high and low health anxiety. Findings revealed that the most prevalent difference emerged on perceptions of personal health, showing individuals with high health anxiety reported more extreme worries, were more hypervigilant about physical symptoms, experienced the emotional and psychological consequences of LS as more negative and severe, and engaged in more dysfunctional coping strategies than those with low health anxiety. Unexpectedly, with regards to perceptions of their children, parents in the high and low health anxiety groups exhibited similar worries. However, high health anxiety parents reported using dysfunctional coping about their children's health more frequently than those with low health anxiety. The findings suggest that health anxiety is of clinical significance for individuals with LS. Accurately identifying and treating health anxiety among this population may be one avenue to reduce the distress experienced by LS carriers.

Presence of Meaning in Life and Search for Meaning in Life and Relationship to Health Anxiety.

The present study explored presence of meaning in life, search for meaning in life, and their correlation with health anxiety. The Meaning in Life Questionnaire and the Short Health Anxiety Inventory were completed by 753 individuals. Results indicated higher presence of meaning in life was associated with lower health anxiety, while the opposite was observed for search for meaning in life. Results also revealed an interaction between presence of meaning in life and search for meaning in life, where individuals with high search for meaning in life and high presence of meaning in life had lower health anxiety than those with high search for meaning in life and low presence of meaning in life. These findings suggest that presence of meaning in life and search for meaning in life are correlates of health anxiety.

Effects of a randomized controlled intervention trial on return to work and health care utilization after long-term sickness absence.

BackgroundThe aim of the RCT study was to investigate if the effect of a multidisciplinary intervention on return to work (RTW) and health care utilization differed by participants’ self-reported health status at baseline, defined by a) level of somatic symptoms, b) health anxiety and c) self-reported general health.MethodsA total of 443 individuals were randomized to the intervention (n = 301) or the control group (n = 142) and responded to a questionnaire measuring health status at baseline. Participants were followed in registries measuring RTW and health care utilization. Relative risk (RR) and odds ratio (OR) were used as measures of associations. Results were adjusted for gender, age, educational level, work ability and previous sick leave.ResultsAmong all responders we found no effect of the intervention on RTW. Among participants with low health anxiety, the one-year probability of RTW was lower in the intervention than in the control group (RR = 0.79 95 % CI 0.68-0.93), but for those with high health anxiety there was no difference between the groups (RR = 1.15 95 % CI 0.84-1.57). Neither general health nor somatic symptoms modified the effect of the intervention on RTW. The intervention had no effect on health care utilization.ConclusionsThe multidisciplinary intervention did not facilitate RTW or decrease health care utilization compared to ordinary case management in subgroups with multiple somatic symptoms, health anxiety or low self-rated health. However, the intervention resulted in a reduced chance of RTW among participants with low health anxiety levels.Trial registration ISRCTN43004323, and ISRCTN51445682

Health Anxiety in Preadolescence--Associated Health Problems, Healthcare Expenditure, and Continuity in Childhood.

Epidemiological data on the distribution, persistence, and clinical correlates of health anxiety (HA) in childhood are scarce. We investigated continuity of HA symptoms and associated health problems and medical costs in primary health services in a general population birth cohort. HA symptoms were assessed in 1886 Danish 11-12year old children (48% boys) from the Copenhagen Child Cohort using the Childhood Illness Attitude Scales (CIAS) together with information on socio-demographics and the child's somatic and mental status and healthcare expenditure. Non-parametric statistics and regression analysis were used to compare groups with low (n = 184), intermediate (n = 1539), and high (n = 161) HA symptom scores. The association between HA symptoms assessed at age 5-7years and HA symptoms at ages 11-12years was examined by Stuart-Maxwell test. HA symptoms were significantly associated with emotional disorders and unspecific somatic complaints, but not with chronic physical conditions. In regression analyses controlling for gender and physical comorbidity, healthcare expenditure peaked in children with the highest HA symptom score, that is these children used on average approximately 150 Euro more than children with the lowest score during the 2-year period preceding inclusion. HA symptoms at age 5-7years were significantly associated with HA symptoms at age 11-12years. We conclude that HA symptoms, including hypochondriacal fears and beliefs, were non-trivial in preadolescents; they showed continuity from early childhood and association with emotional disorders, unspecific somatic complaints, and increased healthcare expenditure. Further research in the clinical significance of childhood HA is required.

Effects of Dispositional Coping Strategy and Level of Health Anxiety on Attentional Bias

We examined the influence of dispositional coping strategy and level of health anxiety (HA) on attentional bias in regard to health-related stimuli. In a dot-probe task participants were exposed to health and nonhealth-related words for 1,250 ms. The high HA group showed significantly greater attentional bias in regard to health stimuli compared to the low HA group. In addition, in the low HA group there was no difference in attentional bias toward health-related words according to whether they were blunters (cognitively avoidant) or monitors (vigilant for information), but in the group with high HA blunters showed stronger attentional bias for health stimuli compared to monitors. Our results in this study confirmed that not only did individuals with HA show a bias toward selective attention to health-related information, but also that this bias was affected by their dispositional coping strategy.

A Randomized Trial of Two Forms of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for an Older Adult Population with Subclinical Health Anxiety

Seniors have been consistently under-represented in the health anxiety treatment literature. The aim of this study was to test the efficacy of a six-session enhanced cognitive behaviour therapy (ECBT) programme for subclinical health anxiety in seniors, and to examine whether the programme fostered therapeutic alliance and motivation for psychotherapy as compared to a standard cognitive behavioural therapy (SCBT) programme and wait-list control (WLC). Fifty-seven seniors with subclinical health anxiety were randomly assigned to six weeks of SCBT, ECBT, or WLC. At pre-treatment, post-treatment, and three-month follow-up, participants completed questionnaires on health anxiety and its dimensions, and other related psychological constructs. Therapeutic alliance and motivation measures were completed after Sessions 1, 3, and 6. At post-treatment, participants in the SCBT and ECBT groups showed significantly lower health anxiety when compared to WLC, with reductions on the subscale measuring disease fear/phobia. Significantly, more participants in the SCBT (66.7%) and ECBT (55.6%) conditions demonstrated clinically significant change on health anxiety compared to the WLC condition (11%). Gains were maintained at three months. There were minimal differences found between the SCBT and ECBT groups on therapeutic alliance and motivation. The findings indicated that both forms of CBT were efficacious for reducing some of the health anxious thoughts and beliefs in seniors.