Neck-focused panic attacks among Cambodian refugees; a logistic and linear regression analysis

Consecutive Cambodian refugees attending a psychiatric clinic were assessed for the presence and severity of current—i.e., at least one episode in the last month—neck-focused panic. Among the whole sample (N = 130), in a logistic regression analysis, the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI; odds ratio = 3.70) and the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS; odds ratio = 2.61) significantly predicted the presence of current neck panic (NP). Among the neck panic patients (N = 60), in the linear regression analysis, NP severity was significantly predicted by NP-associated flashbacks (β = .42), NP-associated catastrophic cognitions (β = .22), and CAPS score (β = .28). Further analysis revealed the effect of the CAPS score to be significantly mediated (Sobel test [Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173–1182]) by both NP-associated flashbacks and catastrophic cognitions. In the care of traumatized Cambodian refugees, NP severity, as well as NP-associated flashbacks and catastrophic cognitions, should be specifically assessed and treated.