Prevalence and correlates of anxiety in Alzheimer's disease

We assessed a consecutive series of 398 patients with probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) for the presence of Generalized Disorder (GAD) using a standardized neuropsychiatric evaluation. Five percent of patients showed GAD during the 4 weeks preceding the psychiatric evaluation. AD patients with GAD showed significantly higher scores of depression, irritability, overt aggression, mania, and pathological crying than AD patients without GAD. The most severe symptoms of anxiety were those of tension, fears, insomnia, and physical complaints.