Altered effective connectivity in internet gaming disorder and its predictive value for clinical severity: A spectral...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Computational Psychiatry

Background:

• Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) is a growing concern.
• Understanding the neural underpinnings of IGD is crucial for developing effective interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the functionally disordered brain regions in IGD.
• To explore the directed effective connectivity (EC) among these regions using a meta-analysis-based Dynamic Causal Modeling (DCM) approach.

Main Methods:

• A meta-analysis of resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) studies was conducted using Anisotropic Effect Size Signature Differential Mapping (AES-SDM) to identify consistent functional changes.
• Regions of interest (ROIs) were defined based on meta-analysis findings.
• rs-fMRI data from 54 IGD patients and 46 healthy controls were analyzed using spectral Dynamic Causal Modeling (spDCM) and Parametric Empirical Bayes (PEB) to assess between-group differences in EC.

Main Results:

• The IGD group exhibited reduced inhibitory EC between the right superior frontal gyrus dorsolateral (SFGdor_R) and the left inferior frontal gyrus opercularis (IFGopercular_L), left inferior frontal gyrus orbitalis (IFGorb_L), and right insula (INS_R).
• The left IFGorb_L showed attenuated self-inhibition in the IGD group.
• Exploratory analysis indicated a link between IFGorb_L self-connection and Internet Addiction Test (IAT) severity.

Conclusions:

• Findings suggest altered frontal EC patterns in IGD, characterized by reduced top-down regulatory signaling.
• The observed alterations may not represent definitive causal biological mechanisms.
• The association between IFGorb_L self-connection and IAT severity requires further validation in larger, longitudinal studies.