Because of the nature and the intensity of the somatic symptoms that are inherent to acute anxiety paroxism, a number of patients suffering from panic attacks turn to medical emergency departments. When the anxiety is a symptom of an underlying acute somatic pathology, immediate medical attention is required. However, when the somatic symptoms are side effects of the anxiety, medicalised assistance will create the risk of the patient being given adequate psychiatric treatment (psychotropic drugs, behavioural treatment and cognitive therapy) either too late or not at all.

An examination of the somatisation profile of 64 patients who were admitted to the Medical Intervention Department of the University Hospital Ghent for hyperventilation and/or anxiety paroxism, and of 11 patients in this group who were later admitted to the psychiatric clinic of the same hospital, shows the risk created by the medicalisation of panic attacks.