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Anxiety Neurosis  Diagnosis
The diagnosis of anxiety disorders is complicated by the large number of causes and types of anxiety and also by the range of disorders that may include anxiety as a part of their symptomatology. Many patients who suffer from anxiety disorders have features or symptoms of more than one disorder giving a mixed picture. A doctor examining an anxious patient will usually begin by ruling out diseases that are known to cause anxiety and then proceed to take the patient's medication history, in order to exclude side effects of prescription drugs. Most doctors will ask about caffeine consumption to see if the patient's dietary habits are a factor. The patient's work and family situation will also be discussed. Laboratory tests for blood sugar and thyroid function are also commonly done. There are no laboratory tests that can diagnose anxiety, although the doctor may order some specific tests to rule out disease conditions. Although there is no psychiatric test that can provide definite diagnoses of anxiety disorders, there are several short-answer interviews or symptom inventories that doctors can use to evaluate the intensity of a patient's anxiety and some of its associated features. These measures include the Hamilton Anxiety Scale and the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule (ADIS).
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