Introduction: Excessive internet use (EIU) has been reported to be comorbid with depression and the manifestation of its symptoms. This study examines the characteristics of excessive internet users that are similar to those of patients with depressive disorders in terms of serotonin transporter gene expression and harm avoidance.
Methods: 91 male adolescents with EIU and 75 healthy comparison subjects were recruited. Between group comparisons were made on genetic polymorphisms of the serotonin transport gene and with respect to novelty seeking and harm avoidance (HA) of Cloninger's Temperament Character Inventory.
Results: The homozygous short allelic variant of the serotonin transporter gene (SS-5HTTLPR) is more frequent in the EIU group (chi(2)=4.38, df=1, p<0.05). The HA and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scores were significantly higher in the EIU group than in the healthy comparison group (t=7.03, df=164, p<0.01; t=2.12, df=164, p=0.04). EIU subjects expressing SS-5HTTLPR also showed higher HA (HA1, HA2, HA4, and total HA) and Young's internet addiction scale scores than EIU subjects expressing the other serotonin transporter gene allele variants (t=2.47, df=89, p=0.01; t=2.33, df=89, p=0.02; t=2.17, df=89, p=0.03; t=2.25, df=89, p=0.03; t=2.93, df=89, p<0.01 respectively).
Conclusions: The EIU group had higher SS-5HTTLPR frequencies, harm avoidance, and BDI scores. SS-5HTTLPR expression was closely related to harm avoidance in EIU. The results of this study suggest that EIU subjects may have genetic and personality traits similar to depressed patients.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2007.10.020 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Virtual patients using large language models: Scalable, contextualized simulation of clinician-patient dialog with feedback.
J Med Internet Res
January 2025
Division of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, 200 First St SW, Rochester, US.
Background: Virtual patients (VPs) are computer screen-based simulations of patient-clinician encounters. VP use is limited by cost and low scalability.
Objective: Show proof-of-concept that VPs powered by large language models (LLMs) generate authentic dialogs, accurate representations of patient preferences, and personalized feedback on clinical performance; and explore LLMs for rating dialog and feedback quality.
Interaction effect of mobile gaming addiction and excessive sugar-sweetened beverage consumption on overweight and obesity among schoolchildren: Evidence from a large population-based study in Guangzhou, China.
J Behav Addict
January 2025
Department of Maternal and Child Health, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510080, China.
Objective: To explore the individual and interactive associations between mobile gaming addiction (MGA), excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), and overweight/obesity among schoolchildren, and to investigate whether these interactions vary by gender or grade level.
Methods: Data were drawn from the Children's Growth Environment, Lifestyle, and Physical and Mental Health Development project (COHERENCE) conducted in Guangzhou, China, during the 2019/20 academic year. 418,197 children aged 6-12 years were included in the study.
Gender Disparities in Pandemic-Related Strains, Digital Coping Strategies, and Protective Mechanisms Among Rural-to-Urban Migrant Working Adolescents in China.
Behav Sci (Basel)
January 2025
Department of Applied Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong 999077, China.
The COVID-19 pandemic placed significant strains on daily life, particularly affecting vulnerable groups such as rural-to-urban young migrant workers. Based on General Strain Theory (GST), these pandemic-related strains lead to delinquent copings, including excessive Internet use. However, the association between pandemic-related challenges faced by migrant youth and their digital copings has yet to be investigated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCorrelation between night sweats and season fluctuation in China.
Front Public Health
January 2025
Shandong Academy of Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China.
Background: Night sweats are a condition in which an individual sweats excessively during sleep without awareness, and stops when they wake up. Prolonged episodes of night sweats might result in the depletion of trace elements and nutrients, affecting the growth and development of children.
Purpose: To investigate the relationship between sweat nights and season.
Reasons for declining to participate in a trial of online cognitive behavioural therapy following orthopaedic trauma: A mixed methods study.
PLoS One
January 2025
Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
The timely enrollment of study participants is critical to the success of clinical trials. Understanding factors that contribute to patients' decision to participate in trials involving online cognitive behavioural therapy for pain management should prove helpful to optimize the design of study protocols. Fracture patients from an orthopaedic clinic who declined to participate in the Cognitive behavioural therapy to Optimize Post-operative rEcovery (COPE) trial were asked to complete a Research Participation Questionnaire that asked them about their previous experiences with clinical research and mental health therapy and their reasons for declining to participate in the COPE trial.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!