ABSTRACT

Facing with internet at an early age, using the internet in increasing time, parents with insufficient knowledge and ineffective control mechanisms result in problematic use of this technology, which is quite useful and facilitates daily life when used correctly. In this way, internet addiction, which is one of the behavioral addictions, emerges as an important public health problem like other addictions. With the fact that internet gaming disorder (IGD) is a separate disorder in Diagnostic and Statistical Handbook of Mental Disorders it is observed that the number of studies especially in adolescents and young adults has increased and although there is no clear consensus, important clues have been obtained on epidemiology, etiology and treatment. In this context, as in other psychiatric disorders, neuroimaging studies are of great importance in revealing the etiology with their results. Although imaging studies with IGD have found results related to prefrontal cortex and subcortical structures such as reward, craving, decision making, impulsivity, attention, the invention of how the different mechanisms in different parts of the brain contribute to the development of IGD and the effectiveness of treatment methods, development of new treatment options are thought to be important. It is seen that further studies involving before and after treatment periods with larger sample groups and using available and new neuroimaging techniques are needed in this subject.