These observations sit within the broad picture of a relatively high prevalence of gambling problems in patients with bipolar disorder in the UK, with around 1 in 10 individuals with the disorder being at least at moderate risk of problem gambling. The BGPS is the third nationally representative survey to provide data on the 12-month prevalence of problem gambling in the UK.3 The BGPS 2010 reported a prevalence of 0.7% for severe risk of problem gambling in the general population and 2.5% for at least moderate risk.3 Consistent with nationwide surveys of the population of the USA,8,18,19 we found elevated rates of gambling problems in our UK sample of patients with bipolar disorder–specifically, that the 12-month prevalence of both severe and at least moderate risk of problem gambling is around four times higher in individuals with bipolar disorder than in the general population (3% and 11% respectively). These findings are also largely consistent with those from Canada: Kennedy et al reported a prevalence of 12% for at least moderate risk of problem gambling in individuals with bipolar disorder,10 and Quilty
