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Risk factors
By Mayo Clinic staffAgoraphobia usually starts during late adolescence or early adulthood, but younger children and older adults also can develop agoraphobia. Between 1 and 5 percent of people in the United States develop agoraphobia during their lifetime. Women are diagnosed with agoraphobia more often than are men.
Although researchers don't know exactly what causes agoraphobia, they do know several risk factors involved, or the things that make you more likely to get agoraphobia. These risk factors may include:
- Having panic disorder
- Experiencing stressful life events, including sexual or physical abuse during childhood
- Having a tendency to be nervous or anxious
- Have an alcohol or substance abuse disorder
- Being female
- Agoraphobia. In: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR. 4th ed. Arlington, Va.: American Psychiatric Association; 2000. http://www.psychiatryonline.com. Accessed March 10, 2009.
- Hollander E, et al. Panic disorders. In: Hales RE, et al., eds. The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Psychiatry. 5th ed. Arlington, Va.: American Psychiatric Association; 2008. http://www.psychiatryonline.com. Accessed March 10, 2009.
- Ciechanowski P. Overview of phobic disorders in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed March 3, 2009.
- Shearer SL. Recent advances in the understanding and treatment of anxiety disorders. Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice. 2007;34:475.
- Agoraphobia. In: Moore DP, et al. Handbook of Medical Psychiatry. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/125211023-6/0/1243/85.html?tocnode=52436571&fromURL=85.html#4-u1.0-B0-323-02911-6..X5001-5--section6_797. Accessed March 10, 2009.
- Richardson WH, et al. Herbal drugs of abuse: An emerging problem. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America. 2007;25:435.
- Hall-Flavin DK (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. March 12, 2009.
