US task force recommends screening adults for anxiety disorders

Adults between the ages of 19 to 64 should be screened for anxiety, the US Preventive Services Task Force announced for the first time on Tuesday. 

In a recommendation published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the task force said that anxiety screenings are a net benefit for adults and can catch disorders that often go un- or underdiagnosed.

There was “insufficient evidence” to screen adults over 65, the group found.

“Anxiety disorders are commonly occurring mental health conditions. They are often unrecognized in primary care settings and substantial delays in treatment initiation occur,” the recommendation states.

The task force is made up of independent medical professionals who make recommendations on all forms of medical literature. The group has previously recommended unilateral screening for depression.

About 25 percent of men and 40 percent of women have some form of anxiety disorder during their lifetime, the report states.

Anxiety disorders, like general or social anxiety, may cause trouble sleeping, irritability or problems with concentration. Anxiety may also show through specific phobias, panic disorders or through mutism.

Screening for anxiety includes the use of diagnostic scales by trained doctors. These scales alone can not diagnose a patient with anxiety, but point a patient towards further treatment.

The task force recommends that physicians be better trained on anxiety disorders and careful when discussing mental health disorders with their patients.

“Clinicians should be cognizant to stigma issues associated with mental health diagnoses and should aim to develop trusting relationships with patients, free of implicit bias, by being sensitive to cultural issues,” the report states.

The group said that in current practice, underdiagnosis of anxiety disorders are “common,” and that often, even when diagnosed, patients receive delayed or inadequate care.