Southpaw

Study: 16 million might have road rage disorder

Doctors say condition is far more common than they thought

Monday, June 5, 2006; Posted: 7:38 p.m. EDT (23:38 GMT)





CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- To you, that angry, horn-blasting tailgater is suffering from road rage. But doctors have another name for it -- intermittent explosive disorder -- and a new study suggests it is far more common than they realized, affecting up to 16 million Americans.

"People think it's bad behavior and that you just need an attitude adjustment, but what they don't know ... is that there's a biology and cognitive science to this," said Dr. Emil Coccaro, chairman of psychiatry at the University of Chicago's medical school.

Road rage, temper outbursts that involve throwing or breaking objects and even spousal abuse can sometimes be attributed to the disorder, though not everyone who does those things is afflicted.

By definition, intermittent explosive disorder involves multiple outbursts that are way out of proportion to the situation. These angry outbursts often include threats or aggressive actions and property damage. The disorder typically first appears in adolescence; in the study, the average age of onset was 14.

The study was based on a national face-to-face survey of 9,282 U.S. adults who answered diagnostic questionnaires in 2001-03. It was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.

About 5 percent to 7 percent of the nationally representative sample had had the disorder, which would equal up to 16 million Americans. That is higher than better-known mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, Coccaro said.

The average number of lifetime attacks per person was 43, resulting in $1,359 in property damage per person. About 4 percent had suffered recent attacks.

The findings were released Monday in the June issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

The findings show the little-studied disorder is much more common than previously thought, said lead author Ronald Kessler, a health care policy professor at Harvard Medical School.

"It is news to a lot of people even who are specialists in mental health services that such a large proportion of the population has these clinically significant anger attacks," Kessler said.

For a couple of decades, intermittent explosive disorder has been included in the manual psychiatrists use to diagnose mental illness, though with slightly different names and criteria. That has contributed to misunderstanding and underappreciation of the disorder, said Coccaro, a study co-author.

Coccaro said the disorder involves inadequate production or functioning of serotonin, a mood-regulating and behavior-inhibiting brain chemical. Treatment with antidepressants, including those that target serotonin receptors in the brain, is often helpful, along with behavior therapy akin to anger management, Coccaro said.

Most sufferers in the study had other emotional disorders or drug or alcohol problems and had gotten treatment for them, but only 28 percent had ever received treatment for anger.

"This is a well-designed, large-scale, face-to-face study with interesting and useful results," said Dr. David Fassler, a psychiatry professor at the University of Vermont. "The findings also confirm that for most people, the difficulties associated with the disorder begin during childhood or adolescence, and they often have a profound and ongoing impact on the person's life."

Jennifer Hartstein, a psychologist at Montefiore Medical Center in New York, said she had just diagnosed the disorder in a 16-year-old boy.

"In most situations, he is relatively affable, calm and very responsible," she said. But in stressful situations at home, he "explodes and tears apart his room, throws things at other people" to the point that his parents have called the police.

Hartstein said the study is important because many people are not aware of the disorder.

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"I read the news today, oh boy"

Yuma

16 million? That's just in the Phoenix area alone! I think that number has to be much higher than that!

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KOC Rules!
Yuma's Dad RIP 03/22/07

Who makes the playoffs first? Suns or Cards?

AzCards21

7% of us do not not have a disorder!

The other 93% just keep pissing us off!

dreamcastrocks

16 million have a disorder for Road Rage?

Whats next?

4 million have a carpet burn disorder?

40 people with wedgie disorders?

dogpoo32

My wife has this disorder. She threatens to stab people. Even me if I speak up against her anger. I doubt she will ever really stab anyone...

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dreamcastrocks

I seriously doubt the validity of disorders such as this one. Why was this not considered a disorder 10 or 20 years ago. We have been driving for 100 years now.

I believe that this is just an attempt to medicate or treat people for something in order to make money, or an excuse to not take responsibility for your actions.

Why is there not a boat driving disorder? Airplane flying? Bicycle riding? Hell, I could see a walking disorder, as in people are pissed off that they have to walk and want to beat people. This is getting ridiculous.

Divide Et Impera

I remember a Disney cartoon that was probably made 20 years before I was born that starred Goofy as a driver with what would now be called road rage disorder. He was a fun-loving, jovial, happy guy regularly, but he transformed into a road raging maniac when he got behind the wheel. I think people have realized this phenomenon longer than you think. It's just that now it has an official name....

PortlandCardFan

I have 'get the frack outta my way' disorder. My cure was 06' Mustang GT this sometimes leads to; blow by you, burnt rubber, and high levels of testosterone. If you have any of these symptoms.....Good!!

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All Hell is breakin loose!!!!!

nothing worth having is freely given... it is earned through hard work and sacrifice.

I'm sorry Thomas!!!

thirty-two

I'm definitely a name-caller in the car. It helps with the rage.

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Rest in peace, Skkorp. We'll never forget you.

Jersey Girl

This thread is so timely for me. In Hawaii they say they drive with "Aloha" and don't honk their horns. So we really didn't do that while we were vacationing there.

However, after leaving the airport and driving from Philly to Jersey, I called at least three people a jackarse and laid on the horn for one of them. (Hey, he was acrossed the yellow line and in my lane.) From the backseat of the car, I heard my mom say, "Guess we're not driving with 'aloha' anymore."

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"'Ohana' means family. Family means nobody gets left behind. Or forgotten." EVER.