BACKGROUND AND AIMS The aim of the present study was to test the impulsivities and compulsivities of behavioral addictions, including Internet gaming disorder (IGD) and gambling disorder (GD), by directly comparing them with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and a healthy control (HC) group. METHODS We enrolled male patients who were diagnosed with IGD, GD or AUD, with 15 patients per group, as well...

The main enzyme for serotonin degradation, monoamine oxidase (MAO) A, has recently emerged as a key biological factor in the predisposition to impulsive aggression. Male carriers of low-activity variants of the main functional polymorphism of the MAOA gene (MAOA-uVNTR) have been shown to exhibit a greater proclivity to engage in violent acts. Thus, we hypothesized that low-activity MAOA-uVNTR a...

Background and aims The ratio of the second and fourth fingers (2D:4D ratio) is a sexually dimorphic trait, with men tending to have lower values than women. This ratio has been related to prenatal testosterone concentrations and addictive behaviors including problematic video-gaming. We aimed to investigate the possible association between 2D:4D ratios and Internet addiction and whether such a...

BACKGROUND Gambling disorder (GD) is characterized by a significant lack of self-control and is associated with impulsivity-related personality traits. It is also linked to deficits in emotional regulation and frequently co-occurs with anxiety and depression symptoms. There is also evidence that emotional dysregulation may play a mediatory role between GD and psychopathological symptomatology. ...

BACKGROUND Impulsivity is a prominent and measurable characteristic of bipolar disorder that can contribute to risk for suicidal behavior. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between impulsivity and severity of past suicidal behavior, a potential predictor of eventual suicide, in patients with bipolar disorder. METHOD In bipolar disorder subjects with either a defini...

Post-mortem studies have suggested a link between the thalamus, psychiatric disorders, and suicide. We evaluated the thalamus and anterior thalamic radiations (ATR) in a group of Veterans with and without a history of suicidal behavior (SB) to determine if thalamic abnormalities were associated with an increased risk of SB. Forty Veterans with mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) and no SB (TBI-SB...

INTRODUCTION The diagnosis of psychoactive substance use disorders has been based primarily on descriptive, symptomatic checklist criteria. In opioid addiction, there are no objective biological indicators specific enough to guide diagnosis, monitor disease status, and evaluate efficacy of therapeutic interventions. Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H MRS) of the brain has potential to i...