Risk For Pathological Gambling Research Articles

El juego patológico en estudiantes de salud de una institución universitaria, Cauca, Colombia

ObjectiveTo establish the prevalence of pathological gambling in students to health sciences at the Cauca university. MethodsCross sectional descriptive research in 243 students of the health faculty, selected by two-stage proportional stratified sampling. A survey was sent through institutional emails, which consisted of sociodemographic, academic, clinical aspects and habits of cigarette and psychoactive substance consumption, in addition to the Brief Pathological Gambling Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using the statistical package SPSS.25. ResultsMost of the participants were women, however the majority of those who has some relationship with the gambling were men; the prevalence was 5.8% of possible gambling addiction; 2.5% and 91.8% register some or no problems related to gambling addiction respectively. The variables cigarette consumption, psychoactive substance consumption and diagnosis of depression were statistically significant (p=0.001; p=0.01; p=0.043) in relation to possible gambling addiction. ConclusionsThe prevalence results indicate that university health students are considered a population at risk for pathological gambling.

Nemedicinska upotreba lekova koji se izdaju na recept u Srbiji - rezultati nacionalnog istraživanja o stilovima života - zloupotreba supstanci i kockanje

Background: Non-medical prescription drug use (NMPDU) of anti-anxiety medications is a growing public health concern. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of the use of anti-anxiety medications, as well as the factors associated with the NMPDU of these medications among adults in Serbia. Materials and methods: The study is a secondary analysis of the data from the National Survey on Lifestyles in Serbia - Substance Abuse and Gambling, conducted in 2014 and 2018, with 7,385 participants. Results: The prevalence of prescription only use of anti-anxiety medications was 13.5% (995/7,385), while the prevalence of the non-medical prescription drug use was 5.04% (372/7,385). Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed an association between non-medical prescription use of anti-anxiety medications and the female sex (OR: 3.23), the age between 35 and 44 years (OR: 1.91), the age between 45 and 54 years (OR: 2.40), or the age between 55 and 64 years (OR: 2.97), reporting a low (OR: 2.40) or average (OR:1.67) satisfaction with health status, being a smoker (OR: 1.62), having moderate (OR: 2.35) or high (OR: 4.56) psychological distress, and having a low/moderate risk for pathological gambling (OR: 1.86). Conclusion: There is a clear need for the inclusion of health care professionals and media in the education of patients on the risks of self-medication, medication exchange, or illegal purchase of these medications.

Gambling Behavior in People at Different Levels of Risk of Pathological Gambling

Objective. To study gambling behavior in betting office clients. Materials and methods. The study was conducted in Pavlovar. The cohort consisted of 216 subjects who were evaluated using a questionnaire method. The risk of being involved in pathological gambling was assessed using the Canadian Problem Gambling Index. This formed groups with different levels of risk. Results and conclusions. The study cohort was dominated by individuals with intermediate and high risks of being involved in play addiction. Significant differences in the characteristics of gambling behavior were found between the groups being compared. Qualitative and quantitative measures of play activity were determined, and these provided evidence supporting the formation of an addictive dominant in the high-risk group (changes in motivations, financial losses, attraction to other types of gambling, regular gambling, and a low level of reflection on gambling-related problems).

Dopaminergic and clinical correlates of pathological gambling in Parkinson's disease: a case report.

Dopaminergic medication for motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD) recently has been linked with impulse control disorders, including pathological gambling (PG), which affects up to 8% of patients. PG often is considered a behavioral addiction associated with disinhibition, risky decision-making, and altered striatal dopaminergic neurotransmission. Using [11C]raclopride with positron emission tomography, we assessed dopaminergic neurotransmission during Iowa Gambling Task performance. Here we present data from a single patient with PD and concomitant PG. We noted a marked decrease in [11C]raclopride binding in the left ventral striatum upon gambling, indicating a gambling-induced dopamine release. The results imply that PG in PD is associated with a high dose of dopaminergic medication, pronounced motor symptomatology, young age at disease onset, high propensity for sensation seeking, and risky decision-making. Overall, the findings are consistent with the hypothesis of medication-related PG in PD and underscore the importance of taking clinical variables, such as age and personality, into account when patients with PD are medicated, to reduce the risk of PG.

A Weak Association between Traits of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Gambling in College Students

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has been characterized as a comorbidity to pathological gambling (PG). However, contradictory evidence has emerged, and it has not been established whether nonimpulsive features of ADHD (e.g., inattention, hyperactivity) contribute to PG risk, or how robust this relationship is in college samples. Using data from 224 college students, multiple regression analyses examined the association between ADHD traits and gambling. A marginal link between impulsivity and gambling emerged, but only in males; hyperactivity and inattention were unrelated to gambling. Therefore, caution should be used in attributing risk for PG to college students with ADHD traits, particularly inattention and hyperactivity.

Dysfunction of Legalized Internet Gambling: Exploring the Risk of Pathological Gambling and Possibility of Spread to Illegal Gambling

Dysfunction of Legalized Internet Gambling: Exploring the Risk of Pathological Gambling and Possibility of Spread to Illegal Gambling

The Molecular Genetics of Pathological Gambling

AbstractAs gambling becomes available to more and more individuals in this country, the problem of compulsive or pathological gambling (PG) will also increase. As with other forms of addiction, both environmental and genetic factors are involved in PG. Identification of the genes that play a role in increasing a person's risk for PG will lead to a better understanding of the disorder and to more rational and effective treatment. Although studies of the molecular genetics of PG are just beginning, a number of interesting observations have been made and are reviewed in this article. As with other addictive behaviors, abnormalities in dopaminergic reward pathways a likely to be involved. Consistent with this, we have observed a significant association between PG and the D1, D2, D3, and D4 dopamine receptor genes. The fact that each these genes has an effect is consistent with a polygenic inheritance of a susceptibility to PG The involvement of multiple dopamine genes consistent with the “reward deficiency syndrome,” which suggests that addictive impulsive disorders are due, at least in part, to genetic abnormalities of the dopamine reward pathways. On the basis of this hypothesis, we describe other genes also likely to play a role in a person's susceptibility to PG.