Clinical approaches to treatment of Internet addiction

Abstract

Background: Internet appearance was one of the main breakthroughs for the mankind in the latest decades. It revolutionized our lives in many aspects and brought about many undeniably positive changes. However, at the same time caused negative consequences. It has led to the emergence of the Internet addiction (IA). The paper is concerned with the issue of treatment of IA.

Method: The paper reviews the current findings on the approaches to IA treatment and evaluates their effectiveness. The main focus of the article concentrates on cognitive and pharmacologic treatment.

Results: The individual approach to IA treatment is advisable. Among drugs for the management of IA, antidepressants, antipsychotics, opioid receptor antagonists, glutamate receptor antagonists, and psychostimulants may be recommended. Some antiepileptics, and especially valproate, are considered as potential drugs for the treatment of IA.

Conclusion: Effective therapy may require an individual approach and best results are expected when psychological and pharmacological treatments are combined.

Keywords: Cognitive behavior therapy; Internet addiction; Pharmacologic treatment; Psychological therapy.