Depressive Disorders

Neuroscience Explains Risk-Taking Behavior With Bipolar Disorder

Neuroscience Explains Risk-Taking Behavior With Bipolar Disorder
Neuroscience Explains Risk-Taking Behavior With Bipolar Disorder
A part of the brain associated with seeking rewards is more stimulated in patients with bipolar disorder, which may explain risk-taking behavior.

Researchers are beginning to discover some of the reasons why bipolar disorder can cause people to engage in risky behavior. The condition involves fluctuating depression and mania.

In the manic stage, the patient often feels intense excitement and irritability, which can trigger unpredictable risky behavior. Work, family, and social life all can be impaired by this risk-taking.

Professor Wael El-Deredy of Manchester University, UK, and colleagues investigated the neuroscience behind this risky behavior. They engaged 20 individuals with bipolar disorder but not taking antipsychotic medication and 20 without bipolar disorder.

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