The Psychiatric Impact of Video Game Addiction in a Sample of Ain Shams University Student

Abstract

Background: The WHO initiative on excessive gaming did not start out with the preconception that it was an addictive disorder. The term used at the outset was (Excessive use of the Internet, computers, smart phones and similar electronic devices) [15]. A decision was made that the delineation of disorders was to be based primarily on the content and behavior, such as gaming, pornography and gambling. This notion corresponds with the recent DSM-5 including Internet gaming disorder as a “condition for further study” [15]. The prevalence of the disorder in 37 cross-sectional studies widely ranged from 0.7% to 27.5%. Methodology: This was a cross sectional study , took place from January 2018 till January 2020 ,conducted on 30 male and female which were diagnosed according to video game addiction questionnaire recruited from outpatient clinics of Ain Shams University undergraduates hospital located in eastern Cairo, Egypt, aging from 18 to 25 years, participants were assessed using (A self- administered questionnaire, -Fahmy and El sherbini socioeconomic classification, video gaming addiction scale, ICD 10 symptoms checklist for mental disorders). Results: This study found that there were statistically non-significant differences in age, gender, relation with the family and friends and also the time spent on video games daily in hours in correlation with video gaming addiction types. This study found statistically significant correlation between both the salience and conflict with others parts of lemmens scale in relation to types of addiction. The results were statistically non significant of the ICD-10 psychiatric morbidities in relation to video gaming addiction subcategories of lemmens scale that could be attributed to the small sample size. Conclusion and Recommendations: This study aimed to increase the awareness of psychiatrists and all mental health professionals regarding the importance of managing video gaming addicted gamers, it was recommended to measure the prevalence video gaming addiction and psychiatric morbidities for in a larger sample and multiple age groups.