Pathological gamblers (those who feel an innate need to gamble and participate in gambling associated behaviors) have been offered little hope by way of drug therapy until now. Participants in a new study were given naltrexone, a drug most commonly prescribed for drug and alcohol dependencies.
During the study, nearly 40% of the pathological gamblers who took the drug naltrexone were able to hold back the urge to gamble for a period of about 1 month. In the control group that received a
Placebo, nearly 11% of the participants showed a reduction in their urges.
The participants in the study ranged in age from 14 to 59 and were avid pathological gamblers (gambling at least 6 to 32 hours per week). The participants commonly reported conditions such as
Depression and
Anxiety disorder although none of the participants were diagnosed with
Bipolar Disorder, psychotic disorder or any substance abuse problems.
Among these 77 participants, 58 were given the naltrexone in dosages of 50, 100 and 150 milligrams. The remaining 19 participants were given a placebo. The participants who received the naltrexone were more likely to feel they could refrain from pathological gambling. The drug proved just as effective in lower doses as the higher doses.
At the conclusion of the study, researchers stated that the drug naltrexone could safely be prescribed to patients with pathological gambling problems for a period of up to 5 months.
