فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

Introduction: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a common psychiatric condition, which is more common in females. The associated individual-societal burden of GAD is substantial. GAD can be further complicated by panic disorder (PD), a disabling condition, which is often accompanied by other psychiatric and medical conditions, including GAD. In this case, PD was accompanied by facet joint osteoarthritis (FJOA) of the lumbar spine. FJOA is a functional failure of synovial facet joints due to variable degrees of loss of the synovial cartilage. This case report aimed to present a unique interaction of psychiatric manifestations and a physical disability, both of which interacted and augmented each other substantially. Conclusions: This unique case of persistent lumbar back pain became a two-faceted agent, interfering with patient’s daily physically activity, causing significant emotional distress, depression, anxiety, and frequent panic attacks. His lumbar spine problem persisted for approximately a year, but it was improved dramatically in late 2015; since then no residual effects interfered with his psychological improvement, apart from the sporadic and negligible flashbacks of his emotionally traumatic experience. In this peculiar case, the physical illness of the patient played a key role in augmenting, impending, and delaying the full psychological recovery.