Neurocognitive functions in pathological gambling: a comparison with alcohol dependence, Tourette syndrome and normal controls

Abstract

Aims: Neurocognitive functions in pathological gambling have relevance for the aetiology and treatment of this disorder, yet are poorly understood. This study therefore investigated neurocognitive impairments of executive functions in a group of carefully screened Diagnostic and Statistical Manual version IV (DSM-IV-TR) pathological gamblers. Performance was compared to a group of normal control participants. To study the specificity of these neurocognitive deficits, a substance dependence group (alcohol dependence) and an impulse control disorder group (Tourette syndrome) were included.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Addiction and general mental health treatment centres.

Participants: Forty-nine pathological gamblers, 48 abstinent alcohol-dependent patients, 46 participants with Tourette syndrome and 49 normal control participants.

Measurements: A comprehensive neuropsychological battery measuring executive functions as well as basic cognitive functions.

Findings: Both the pathological gambling and the alcohol dependent groups were characterized by diminished performance on inhibition, time estimation, cognitive flexibility and planning tasks. The Tourette syndrome group showed deficits only on inhibition tasks. Basic cognitive functions were intact in all clinical groups. Comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, antisocial personality disorder and nicotine dependence influenced the impaired functions of the clinical groups only minimally.

Conclusions: Carefully screened groups of pathological gamblers and alcohol dependents were characterized by diminished executive functioning, suggesting a dysfunction of frontal lobe circuitry in these disorders. The resemblance between the pathological gambling group and the alcohol dependence group suggests a common neurocognitive aetiology for these disorders. Psychosocial treatment of these disorders could benefit from assessing and targeting deficits in executive functions, as they probably influence the course of these disorders negatively.