Increased cortical thickness in professional on-line gamers

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Neuroimaging

Background:

• Previous research explored video game effects on brain activity and volume.
• Limitations include cross-sectional designs, co-morbidities, and short follow-up periods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the correlation between cognitive flexibility, brain cortical volume, and career length in professional online gamers.
• To test the hypothesis that extended gaming careers are associated with specific cortical changes.

Main Methods:

• High-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans were performed on 23 professional gamers.
• Cortical thickness was measured using FreeSurfer software.
• Cortical thickness was correlated with gaming career length and performance metrics.

Main Results:

• Positive correlations were found between career length and cortical thickness in the right superior frontal gyrus, right superior parietal gyrus, and right precentral gyrus.
• Increased prefrontal cortex thickness correlated with higher winning rates.
• Enhanced prefrontal and parietal cortical thickness was associated with better performance on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test.

Conclusions:

• Long-term, regular online gaming in healthy individuals is associated with structural brain changes.
• These changes occur in the prefrontal and parietal cortices.
• These brain regions are crucial for cognitive flexibility.