Comparison of Neurocognitive Functions between Alcohol Use Disorder and Gambling Disorder Patients

Objectives ： This study compares the characteristics of neurocognitive function of patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and those with gambling disorder (GD). Methods ： We analyzed the neurocognitive functions of 27 AUD patients and 33 GD patients aged between 18 and 40 years using Korean Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV (K-WAIS-IV), Korean version of Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-K), and clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S). Results ： AUD patients exhibited significantly poor performance compared to GD patients in Working Memory Index, Information, Digit Span, Arithmetic and Longest Digit Span Backward subtests. Conversely, GD patients showed significantly poor performance compared to GD patients in Verbal Comprehension Index and Similarity subtests. However, AUD patients showed a significantly negative correlation with AUDIT-K and Digit Span after age and education control, whereas GD patients showed a significantly negative correlation with CGI-S and Processing Speed Index, Symbol Search, and Coding subtest results. Conclusion : By applying the latest version of the Wechsler intelligence scale, the current study showed a significant difference in neurocognitive functions in AUD and GD. These findings suggest the need for further research using other neurocognitive tests, such as those related to an individual’s planning and cognitive flexibility.