Online gaming addiction: Doctors don’t know how to treat children hooked on internet video games

CHILDREN as young as seven are presenting to psychiatrists with internet gaming addiction, but many doctors don’t know how to diagnose or treat them.

Children as young as seven are presenting to psychiatrists with internet gaming addiction. Picture: Thinkstock

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CHILDREN as young as seven are presenting to psychiatrists with internet gaming addiction, but many doctors don’t know how to diagnose or treat them, an expert has revealed.

A survey of nearly 300 psychiatrists shows an increasing number of children are presenting with the problem, Dr Pravin Duller, an adolescent psychiatrist from Sydney’s Campbelltown Hospital, said.

“Seventy per cent of psychiatrists feel it is a going to be a significant problem across all ages in the future and it is going to get worse,” Dr Duller said.

“Half of those surveyed said it was most common among children and adolescents”.

Internet Gaming Disorder has just been added latest Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which is the leading means of categorising psychiatric conditions.

Dr Duller said he and his colleagues saw seven or eight-year-olds “quite frequently”.

“This is a significant problem going in the context of parenting, particularly for children with ADHD,” he said.

Internet gaming addiction is an increasing problem for children and teenagers. Picture: Thinkstock

Dr Duller said signs that children were addicted to gaming included withdrawal symptoms and signs of aggression when they are forced to stop, continued gaming despite evidence of harm, and multiple problems in other areas such as school, family and friends.

Other problem signs are children going without food or sleep.

He said adolescent and child psychologists were more likely to screen for the addiction and ask questions about it from patients initially admitting for another reason.

Dr Duller said general psychiatrists did not feel confident in diagnosing or treating the problem, despite one in three saying it was common in their practice.

Australian Communications and Media Authority data shows 95 per cent of boys play games on the internet during weekdays, including four per cent who spend nine hours or more.

This doubles to 7.8 per cent on weekends. In addition, one in ten boys play internet games for five to eight hours a day during the week, rising to one in five on weekends.

Dr Duller said stopping children from playing altogether wasn’t the answer as they may use gaming to manage their emotions or bond with friends.

He presented his findings to the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists Annual Congress in Adelaide this week.

Professor Elizabeth Handsley, President of the Australian Council of Children and the Media, said she was also concerned about children being exposed to online games with gambling-like features which may be addictive.

“This includes apps which are marketed to children or easily found on the app store by quite young children,” she said.

“They encourage children to take a risk and get a reward, or include casino-style gambling”.

A review of apps on the Children and Gambling Watch List can be found at childrenandmedia.org.au

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