Hormonal responses in gambling versus alcohol abuse: a review of human studies

Y Li, N Ramoz, E Derrington, JC Dreher�- Progress in Neuro�…, 2020 - Elsevier
Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry, 2020Elsevier
The endocrine system plays an essential role in communication between various organs of
the body to maintain homeostasis. Both substance use disorders (SUDs) and non-substance
abuse disrupt this system and lead to hormonal dysregulations. Here, we focus on the
comparison between the function of the endocrine system in gambling disorders and alcohol
addiction to understand the commonalities and differences in their neurobiological and
psychological underpinnings. We review human research to compare findings on gambling�…
Abstract
The endocrine system plays an essential role in communication between various organs of the body to maintain homeostasis. Both substance use disorders (SUDs) and non-substance abuse disrupt this system and lead to hormonal dysregulations. Here, we focus on the comparison between the function of the endocrine system in gambling disorders and alcohol addiction to understand the commonalities and differences in their neurobiological and psychological underpinnings. We review human research to compare findings on gambling addiction and alcohol dependence pertaining to the dynamic interplay between testosterone and cortisol. Understanding and classifying similarities in hormonal responses between behavioural addiction and SUDs may facilitate development of treatments and therapeutic interventions across different types of addictive disorders, while describing differences may shed light on therapeutic interventions for specific disorders. Although research on gambling addiction is in its infancy, such evaluation may still have a positive effect for addiction research, thereby stimulating discovery of “crossover” pharmacotherapies with benefits for both SUDs and nonsubstance addictions.
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