Objective:

Background:

Videogaming is a popular activity among adolescents, and the effects of increased play on behavior and attention remain heavily debated. Many studies have largely focused on the general adolescent population and have not specifically examined adolescents at higher risk for behavioral comorbidities, such as those with TS.

Design/Methods:

The study was conducted at the Rush Movement Disorders Clinic, enrolling adolescents aged 12-19 with TS. Participants and guardians completed a questionnaire estimating daily videogame play and game characteristics. Our primary outcome was the Behavior Assessment System for Children, 3^rd Ed (BASC) assessing behavior and conduct. Our secondary outcome was the Continuous Performance Test, 2^nd Edition (CPT-II) assessing attention. Other assessments included the Yale Global Total Tic Severity Scale (YGTTSS), Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS), Revised Children's, Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS), and the Children’s Depression Inventory, 2^nd Edition (CDI-2). The associations between the variables and time spent on gaming were assessed using Spearman correlation and ANOVA.

Results:

Increased time spent playing video games was negatively correlated with internalizing problems composite (IPC) subscale within the BASC (Spearman correlation = -0.50, p = 0.004), according to the children report, concerning weekends, while school in session. There were no significant differences observed in attention (CPT-II) across time gaming. There were no differences observed between game genre type and both behavior and conduct (BASC) and attention (CPT-II).

Conclusions:

Greater time spent playing video games may be linked to reduced internalizing problems in adolescents with Tourette’s Syndrome. There was no measurable difference in attention. These findings suggest that videogaming may offer potential psychosocial benefits in this population, but continued investigation is required to help further understand if there is an effect on attention.