Effectiveness of atomoxetine and methylphenidate for problematic online gaming in adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Abstract

Both MPH and ATM reduced the severity of Internet gaming disorder symptoms, and this reduction was correlated with impulsivity reduction, which also resulted from both ADHD medications. These findings suggest impulsivity plays a critical role in the development of problematic online gaming.

Treatments for Internet gaming disorder and Internet addiction: A systematic review.

“…The most recent RCT compared 8 sessions of traditional group CBT to 8 sessions of virtual reality group therapy, a CBT-based approach that uses virtual reality technology to teach relaxation skills, simulate high-risk situations for gaming, and provide sound-assisted cognitive restructuring (Park, Kim, et al, 2016). Not only did the content and format of the treatments differ, but so did the duration of the weekly sessions, with the traditional groups lasting 2 hours and the virtual reality groups only 25 minutes.…”

Pattern of video game use in children with attention‐deficit–hyperactivity disorder and typical development

“…Individuals with ADHD and Internet gaming disorder had lower N ‐acetyl‐aspartate within the frontal lobe compared with healthy controls on proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy . Moreover, severity of problematic online gaming symptoms was noted to be decreased by methylphenidate or atomoxetine, Food and Drug Administration‐approved medication in individuals with ADHD . Conversely, another separate study found the opposite: longer hours spent on electronic media, including video gaming, was observed in the psychiatric clinic population, particularly those with ADHD compared with their counterparts, but there was no significant difference in game addiction between these two groups .…”

“…12 Moreover, severity of problematic online gaming symptoms was noted to be decreased by methylphenidate or atomoxetine, Food and Drug Administration-approved medication in individuals with ADHD. 13 Conversely, another separate study found the opposite: longer hours spent on electronic media, including video gaming, was observed in the psychiatric clinic population, particularly those with ADHD compared with their counterparts, but there was no significant difference in game addiction between these two groups. 14 This particular finding may be explained by another study in which children with ADHD had similar video game performance compared with healthy controls, although those with ADHD performed worse on the attention task.…”

Current approaches to the treatment and correction of Internet addiction

“…Через 8 нед лечения время, проводимое больными в Интернете, значительно снизилось, что коррелировало со снижением интенсивности симптомов СДВГ. В корейском 12-недельном исследовании [35] лечили 86 подростков также с диагнозом СДВГ и ИА. Подростки были разделены на две группы лечения: 44 проходили лечение метилфенидатом, а 42 участника получали атомоксетин.…”