title: Sailing can improve quality of life of people with severe mental disorders: results of a cross over randomized controlled trial.
abstract: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of a sailing rehabilitation program on the quality of life (QoL) in a sample of patients with severe mental disorders. The study adopted a randomized, crossover, waiting-list controlled design. The participants enrolled in the study were outpatients diagnosed with severe chronic mental disorders. The participants (N=40) exposed to rehabilitation with sailing took part in a series of supervised cruises near the gulf of Cagliari, South Sardinia, and showed a statistically significant improvement of their quality of life compared to the control group. This improvement was comparable to the improvement in psychopathologic status and social functioning as shown in a previous report of the same research project. The improvement was maintained at follow-up only during the trial and for a few months later: after 12 months, patients returned to their baseline values and their quality of life showed a worsening trend. This is the first study to show that rehabilitation with sailing may improve the quality of life of people with severe chronic mental disorders. In all likelihood, a program grounded on learning how to manage a sailing vessel - during which patients perform cruises that emphasize the exploration of the marine environment by sailing - might be interesting enough and capture the attention of the patients so as to favour greater effectiveness of standard rehabilitation protocols, but this should be specifically tested.
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Mauro Giovanni
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Carta
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Maggiani
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pilutzu
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Maria Francesca
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Moro
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Gioia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mura
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sancassiani
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Vellante
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vellante
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Gian Mario
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Migliaccio
authors.affiliation: Institute of Psychiatry of Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (IPUB/UFRJ).
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Machado
authors.affiliation: Institute of Psychiatry of Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (IPUB/UFRJ).
authors.forename: Antonio Egidio
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Nardi
authors.affiliation: Centro di Psichiatria di Consulenza e Psicosomatica AUOC Cagliari and University of Cagliari, #CONI, Italian Olympic Committee - Sardinia.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Preti
keywords: Bipolar disorder; Schizophrenia.; quality of life; rehabilitation; sailing