Pathological Gambling News and Research

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8.5 percent of youth gamers addicted to video games

Parents have been saying for years that their kids are "addicted" to video games, but a new study by an Iowa State University psychology professor is the first to actually report that pathological patterns of video game addiction exist in a national sample of youth, aged 8 to 18.

20 Apr 2009

New insights into addiction

A new comprehensive review by researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University and the University of Cambridge, England provides vital insights into the neurological basis of addiction by investigating Parkinson's disease patients, who in some instances develop various addictions when undergoing medical treatment.

25 Feb 2009

Gambling addict wins 3 years jail sentence

A 55-year-old travel agent's gambling addiction has won her a three year jail sentence after she stole $52,558 from her Brisbane employer.

19 Jan 2009

Drug used to treat alcohol dependence also works for pathological gamblers

Scientists in the U.S. have found that a drug commonly prescribed for the treatment of alcoholism and drug dependence, also works for pathological gamblers.

8 Jun 2008

Gambling addicts don't learn from their mistakes

Gambling addicts don't learn from their mistakes, according to a study published today in the open access journal Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health.

28 Mar 2008

Deep brain stimulation to treat Parkinson's makes some act irrationally

An implantable brain device meant to help Parkinson's disease patients better control their movements, has been found to have some worrying side-effects.

29 Oct 2007

Online gambling adds new risks for gamblers with Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease sufferers could be adversely affected by the growth of betting on the web because they are more likely to become gambling addicts, says a doctor writing in the British Medical Journal.

20 Apr 2007

Problem gambling is an addiction that medical professionals should be aware of

Decisions about building casinos in the UK have not given enough weight to the potential health effects, argue two doctors in this week's BMJ.

20 Apr 2007

New understanding of drug addiction

The reason why some individuals may be predisposed to drug addiction has been discovered by scientists from the universities of Bristol and Cambridge.

1 Mar 2007

Therapy for restless legs may trigger compulsive gambling

Compulsive gambling with extreme losses -- in two cases, greater than $100,000 -- by people without a prior history of gambling problems has been linked to a class of drugs commonly used to treat the neurological disorder restless legs syndrome (RLS).

11 Feb 2007

Problem gambling runs in families

Problem gambling runs in families according to a University of Iowa study published online Feb. 24 in the journal Psychiatry Research.

15 Mar 2006

Psychiatric patients who smoke

An editorial in the January 2006 issue of the Psychiatric Bulletin reviews the evidence for the effectiveness of gene-based smoking cessation packages, and asks whether they are appropriate for psychiatric patients.

10 Jan 2006

Gambling and sex addiction caused by Parkinson's drug

According to a doctor at a clinic in the U.S., a certain category of drug, which is often prescribed for Parkinson's disease, can cause some patients to become compulsive gamblers or addicted to sex.

11 Jul 2005

Dopamine agonist therapy for Parkinson's disease may lead to problem gambling

Eleven patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) developed pathological gambling behavior following dopamine agonist therapy, a drug therapy to control movement problems caused by Parkinson's disease, according to a study posted online which will appear in the September print issue of Archives of Neurology.

11 Jul 2005

Pathological gambling accompanies myriad of psychological disorders for some veterans

American Indian and Hispanic veterans are much more likely than the general population to be pathological gamblers, and their addiction is likely accompanied by several psychological disorders, according to a study of 1,221 such veterans in the southwest and north central United States.

27 Apr 2005

Problem gambling associated with brain impairments

Pathological gamblers exhibit complex impairments in decision-making and executive function processes associated with the prefrontal cortex of the brain, according to research that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology 57th Annual Meeting in Miami Beach, Fla., April 9 – 16, 2005.

13 Apr 2005

Problem gambling is a health issue that needs to be taken seriously

The United Kingdom is just about to undergo one of the most radical changes of gambling legislation in its history. The new gambling bill will provide the British public with increased opportunities and access to gambling like they have never seen before.

5 Nov 2004

Young gamblers more likely to have use disorders and psychiatric problems

Adolescents and young adults who gamble are more likely than nongamblers to have substance use disorders and psychiatric problems, according to an article in the November issue of The Archives of General Psychiatry.

1 Nov 2004