Pathological Gambling in Clinical Psychiatric Practice: A Case Series from a Tertiary Care Setting

Published

2026-06-12

Keywords:

Gambling disorder, Behavioral addiction, Online betting, Case series, Impulse control, Psychiatric comorbidity

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Issue

Article in Press: 2026

Section

Case Series

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Copyright (c) 2026 Shradha Khatri

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Authors

  • Shradha Khatri AFMC

Abstract

significant psychological, financial and interpersonal consequences. In recent years, the expansion of online betting platforms and digital gaming applications has increased accessibility to gambling activities, particularly among young adults. Despite these changes, clinical descriptions of gambling disorder in Indian psychiatric settings remain limited. This case series describes five individuals presenting to a tertiary care Psychiatry OPD with features consistent with gambling disorder as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition Text Revision (DSM-5-TR).

The cases highlight diverse forms of gambling, including online sports betting, fantasy gaming platforms, casino gambling and traditional card betting. Common themes included persistent gambling urges, chasing losses, financial distress, concealment of behavior and comorbid psychiatric symptoms. The cases emphasize the importance of early recognition and integrated management of gambling disorder within routine psychiatric practice.

How to Cite

Khatri, S. (2026). Pathological Gambling in Clinical Psychiatric Practice: A Case Series from a Tertiary Care Setting. Indian Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Retrieved from https://www.ijocp.com/index.php/IJOCP/article/view/297

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