Neural connectivity in Internet gaming disorder and alcohol use disorder: A resting-state EEG coherence study

Su Mi Park,Bo Kyung Sohn,Jung-Seok Choi,Dai Jin Kim,Yeon Jin Kim,Jun-Young Lee,Hee Yeon Jung,Ji Yoon Lee

doi:10.1038/s41598-017-01419-7

Abstract

The present study compared neural connectivity and the level of phasic synchronization between neural populations in patients with Internet gaming disorder (IGD), patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD), and healthy controls (HCs) using resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) coherence analyses. For this study, 92 adult males were categorized into three groups: IGD (n = 30), AUD (n = 30), and HC (n = 32). The IGD group exhibited increased intrahemispheric gamma (30–40 Hz) coherence compared to the AUD and HC groups regardless of psychological features (e.g., depression, anxiety, and impulsivity) and right fronto-central gamma coherence positively predicted the scores of the Internet addiction test in all groups. In contrast, the AUD group showed marginal tendency of increased intrahemispheric theta (4–8 Hz) coherence relative to the HC group and this was dependent on the psychological features. The present findings indicate that patients with IGD and AUD exhibit different neurophysiological patterns of brain connectivity and that an increase in the fast phasic synchrony of gamma coherence might be a core neurophysiological feature of IGD.

Highlights

Internet gaming disorder (IGD) is the repetitive use of Internet-based games that leads to significant difficulties in social and psychological functioning[1]
It is suggested in the appendix of the DSM-5 that IGD be further assessed as an addictive condition because it has been associated with depressed mood, anxiety, and aggressiveness as well as with psychiatric disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD)[7,8,9,10,11,12]
The primary goal of the present study was to identify the electrophysiological features of IGD using resting-state EEG coherence by comparing the EEG data of IGD patients with those of alcohol-use disorder (AUD) patients and healthy controls (HCs)

Summary

Introduction

Internet gaming disorder (IGD) is the repetitive use of Internet-based games that leads to significant difficulties in social and psychological functioning[1]. Individuals with an alcohol-use disorder (AUD) exhibit increased interhemispheric coherence relative to unaffected individuals[24, 25] and patients with long-term abstinent and non-abstinent AUD show significant increases in bilateral, intrahemispheric, and posterior coherence values in the alpha and beta frequency bands[26]. These findings suggest that increased EEG coherence may serve as an endophenotype for AUD. In terms of behavioral addictions, one study found an association between neural connectivity and compulsive buying behavior using EEG coherence analyses[28], which suggests that dysfunctional cortical connectivity may be associated with addictive behaviors

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