Therapy and rehabilitation in gambling disorder: Possibilities and limits

Gambling Disorder is a relatively common and often disabling psychiatric condition characterized by intrusive urges to engage in deleterious gambling behaviour. The aim of this chapter is to examine the history of gambling disorder treatment. Several types of psychotherapy are currently being used to treat pathological gamblers. These include Gamblers Anonymous, cognitive-behavioral therapy and brief intervention. Evidence-based literature about treatment reports a series of randomized trials -usually applied to the cognitive and behavioral approaches- which are the most effective ones for the treatment and rehabilitation of this disorder. Regarding psychopharmacological treatment no medications are FDA-approved for the treatment of Gambling Disorder, but pharmacotherapies are commonly recommended and utilized in the treatment of the disorder.