Abstract
Aims: The present study investigated neural connectivity associated with treatment responses in patients with Internet gaming disorder (IGD) using resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) coherence analyses.Methods: We included 30 patients with IGD and 32 healthy control subjects (HCs). Of the IGD patients, 18 completed an outpatient treatment that included pharmacotherapy with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors for 6 months. Resting-state EEG coherence and self-report questionnaires were used to evaluate clinical and psychological features pre- and post-treatment, and data were analyzed using generalized estimating equations.Results: Compared with HCs, patients with IGD showed increased beta and gamma intrahemispheric coherence and increased delta intrahemispheric coherence of the right hemisphere at baseline. After 6 months of outpatient management, patients with IGD exhibited improvements in IGD symptoms compared with baseline, but they continued to show increased beta and gamma intrahemispheric coherence compared with that of HCs. No significant EEG coherence changes between the pre- and post-treatment assessments were detected in any band in the IGD group.Conclusion: These findings suggest that significantly greater intrahemispheric fast-frequency coherence may be an important neurophysiological trait marker of patients with IGD.
Highlights
Internet gaming disorder (IGD) is characterized by a pattern of excessive and repetitive use of Internet-based games [1]
The patients with IGD did not differ from the healthy controls (HCs) in terms of age or IQ
Significant differences in education, Beck depression inventory-II (BDI-II), Beck anxiety inventory (BAI), and Barratt impulsiveness scale-11 (BIS-11) scores were observed between the two groups
Summary
Internet gaming disorder (IGD) is characterized by a pattern of excessive and repetitive use of Internet-based games [1]. Zhang [8] reported a decreased amplitude of low fluctuations in the orbitofrontal cortex and posterior cingulate cortex in young adults with IGD compared with controls They found that patients with IGD exhibited enhanced interactions in the default mode and executive control networks compared with controls. Patients with IGD showed increased connectivity in sensorimotor brain networks and altered interhemispheric resting-state functional connectivity in the prefrontal lobe, including the bilateral superior frontal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, and middle frontal gyrus [9, 10]. These findings suggest that patients with IGD have impairments in reward-related processing, general cognitive functioning, and impulse control
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