Demographic and clinical features of 150 pathological gamblers referred to a community addictions programme

Abstract

Introduction: Pathological gambling has been defined as a persistent and recurrent maladaptive gambling behaviour that disrupts personal, family and work life. The present study reports on the sociodemographic features, gambling activity, comorbidity and legal problems in a sample of 150 pathological gamblers who sought treatment from the Community Addiction Management Programme (CAMP), Singapore over a 4-year period from 2002 to 2006. Materials and Methods: Data were collected on 150 consecutive subjects who sought treatment at CAMP. Patients were administered a semi-structured interview to elicit demographic data, age of onset, family history, onset games and types of games ever played, largest debt incurred due to gambling, triggers, illegal activities and suicidal attempts by their counsellor. Patients were then assessed by the clinicians to establish the primary and comorbid diagnoses. Results: The mean age of the subjects was 42.5 [standard deviation (SD) 10.2] years. The majority of them were males (87.3%) and of Chinese origin (97.3%). The most common comorbid disorders were mood disorders (n = 22, 14.7%), substance abuse (n = 11, 7.3%) and alcohol abuse or dependence (n = 7, 4.7%). Sixteen (10.7%) subjects had a history of suicidal attempts which had been precipitated by gambling-related issues. Conclusions: Pathological gambling in our subjects appears to be associated with significant comorbidity and financial problems. These are the preliminary findings and further research is needed regarding the phenomenology, profile, course and response to treatment of pathological gambling disorders.