Parkinson’s Drug Research Shows Impulse Control Issues while Casino Gambling
Parkinson’s medication is now thought to cause impulsive behavior, increasing the risk of problem gambling in patients. According to JAMA Internal Medicine, doctors may have overestimated the risk/reward factor of using the dopamine receptor agonist in patients with Parkinson’s disease. One researcher said that three of his patients went bankrupt and lost their homes while taking the drug.
The link between impulsive behavior and dopamine receptor drugs is strongest in pramipexole (brand name Mirapex) and ropinirole (Requip). Patients who took those drugs were 277 times more likely to exhibit impulse control issues.
Issues with Impulse Control
Because the link between Mirapex (and Requip) and impulse control issues, physicians are calling for black-box warnings to be added to boxes. Such warnings would give uses of the drugs ample warning that their usage could cause seriously impulsive behavior.
The study looked at 1,580 people stretched over 22 countries between the year 2003 and 2012. Over that 10 year period, researchers found 710 cases involving dopamine receptor agonists. The dopamine receptor agonists are drugs when treat cases of Parkinson’s disease. In the other 870 cases, all other types of drugs were being used.
Link between Alcoholism and Gambling Addiction
Earlier studies have linked problem gambling to a history of shopping addiction in a family. The study showed that teenagers who responded that one or more members of their family dealt with overspending in other areas of their lives were more likely to become involved in compulsive gambling.
The study showed a link between shopping addiction and gambling addiction. If a child had a family member who was a shopping addict, that child was more likely to show a propensity to gamble compulsively. If a child had a family member with a gambling addiction, that child was likely to have a greater likelihood of compulsive shopping. If a teen had a family member who was a shopping addict, then that teenager was likelier to fall prey to gambling addiction.
Hypersexuality and Gambling Addiction
Another recent study showed that dopamine in the brain which is thought to cause hypersexuality in adults is also likely to contribute to gambling addiction, too.
Thomas Moore: Side Effects at an “Astronomical Rate”
Thomas Moore of the Institute of Safe Medication Practices, who was a lead author of the JAMA Internal Medicine study, says that drugs like ReQuip show side effects in a significant portion of the population. Dr. Moore told HealthDay, “These psychiatric side effects appears to be occurring among at least 10% of the population. If you compare that with, say, the risk of suicide among patients who take antidepressant drugs, this is much higher. It’s an astronomical rate, in terms of adverse event risk.”
Joshua Gagne: “A Cornerstone Treatment”
Joshua Gagne, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, says that these drugs are a “cornerstone treatment”, so they are likely to continue to be used by most medical professionals treating Parkinsons. Gagne says that issues currently go underreported, so patients need studies like this to learn to open up about their self-control issues.
Gagne told HealthDay, “It’s easy to imagine that a patient would be ashamed if they’re losing a lot of money gambling or doing things that they generally don’t want their family to know about.”
Joshua Gagne wrote an opinion at the end of the JAMA report. He wrote, “While they should continue to be used, it’s equally important to know what the risks are. So, while more research is done, we need to encourage physicians and pharmacists and patients to discuss the concern, and to help patients be more open about it when these issues take hold.”
Other Dopamine-Affecting Drugs
Parkinson’s drugs are by no means the only treatments which have bad side effects. In fact, a whole class of drugs which affect dopamine in the brain have harmful side effects. Pfizer’s aid to help people stop smoking, Chantix, affects dopamine levels in the brain, as well. Chantix has received significant media attention, along with a fair amount of public criticism, for its ill effects on those who are trying to stop smoking. For that reason, Chantix was given a black box warning in 2013.
