The fear of fear itself may make people more vulnerable to developing certain psychiatric disorders, a study suggests.

Researchers found that people who are especially sensitive to the physical signs of anxiety - from sweaty palms to a pounding heart - have a higher risk of developing anxiety disorders, including recurrent panic attacks.

For about 20 years, researchers have recognized a trait called anxiety sensitivity, where people interpret the physical aspects of anxiety as a threat in and of themselves. They may, for example, believe they’re having a heart attack when their heart rate rises in response stress.

Past research has suggested that anxiety sensitivity might be a risk factor for future anxiety disorders, including panic disorder.

But the new findings, according to the study authors, are the first to give strong evidence that this is the case.

The study doesn’t prove that anxiety sensitivity directly causes clinical anxiety disorders, explained lead author Dr. Brad Schmidt, a professor of psychology at Florida State University in Tallahassee.

But if it does contribute to these disorders, then that would raise the possibility for prevention, he told Reuters Health.

The study, published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research, included 404 young adults who were followed over two years. At the beginning of the study, they were interviewed and completed a battery of standard tests, including the Anxiety Sensitivity Index.

This index gauges a person’s fear of the bodily sensations that arise with stress and anxiety - such as increased heart rate, sweating and dizziness.

In general, the researchers found, people who scored high on the Anxiety Sensitivity Index were about twice as likely to suffer a panic attack or be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder during the study period.

In another study not yet published, Schmidt and his colleagues have already examined whether behavioral therapy to reduce anxiety sensitivity lowers the risk of future anxiety disorders.

Those results are promising, according to Schmidt, and more-definitive findings should come from a planned five-year, multi-site trial.

SOURCE: Journal of Psychiatric Research, December 2006.