title: A web-based study of bipolarity and impulsivity in athletes engaging in extreme and high-risk sports.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We hypothesised that men and women who engage in extreme or high-risk sports would score higher on standardised measures of bipolarity and impulsivity compared to age and gender matched controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four-hundred and eighty extreme or high-risk athletes (255 males and 225 females) and 235 age-matched control persons (107 males and 128 females) were enrolled into the web-based case-control study. The Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) and Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) were administered to screen for bipolarity and impulsive behaviours, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results indicated that extreme or high-risk athletes had significantly higher scores of bipolarity and impulsivity, and lower scores on cognitive complexity of the BIS-11, compared to controls. Further, there were positive correlations between the MDQ and BIS-11 scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results showed greater rates of bipolarity and impulsivity, in the extreme or high-risk athletes, suggesting these measures are sensitive to high-risk behaviours.
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Affective Disorders,Chair of Psychiatry,Jagiellonian University Medical College,Cracow,Poland.
authors.forename: Dominika
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dudek
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Affective Disorders,Chair of Psychiatry,Jagiellonian University Medical College,Cracow,Poland.
authors.forename: Marcin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Siwek
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Affective Disorders,Chair of Psychiatry,Jagiellonian University Medical College,Cracow,Poland.
authors.forename: Rafał
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jaeschke
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Affective Disorders,Chair of Psychiatry,Jagiellonian University Medical College,Cracow,Poland.
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Drozdowicz
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Affective Disorders,Chair of Psychiatry,Jagiellonian University Medical College,Cracow,Poland.
authors.forename: Krzysztof
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Styczeń
authors.affiliation: 1Department of Affective Disorders,Chair of Psychiatry,Jagiellonian University Medical College,Cracow,Poland.
authors.forename: Aleksandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arciszewska
authors.affiliation: 2Students' Scientific Association of Affective Disorders, Faculty of Medicine,Jagiellonian University Medical College,Cracow,Poland.
authors.forename: Adrian A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Chrobak
authors.affiliation: 3Department of Adult Psychiatry,Poznan University of Medical Sciences,Poznan,Poland.
authors.forename: Janusz K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Rybakowski
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D056352:Athletes / Q000523:psychology*; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003617:Dangerous Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D013177:Sports / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Barratt Impulsiveness Scale; Mood Disorder Questionnaire; bipolarity; extreme sports; impulsivity