{"id":50438,"date":"2017-05-16T14:00:47","date_gmt":"2017-05-16T21:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=50438"},"modified":"2017-05-16T13:53:26","modified_gmt":"2017-05-16T20:53:26","slug":"las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/","title":{"rendered":"Las Vegas Hospital Installs Video Poker Machines to Help Parkinson\u2019s Rehab"},"content":{"rendered":"

You can\u2019t go very far in Las Vegas<\/a> without bumping into a video poker machine, but now, it seems, they\u2019re installing them in the hospitals. Or at least in one hospital.<\/p>\n

\"Video
Vegas\u2019 ubiquitous video poker machines are now installed at the HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital for use in the rehabilitation of patients with motor-neuron disease. (Image: VegasInfo.nl)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fox News reported this week that the HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital has introduced two video poker terminals, not for purposes of entertainment, but to help with the therapy routines of patients who suffer from Parkinson\u2019s and other motor-neuron diseases. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we know about gambling is that it stimulates the prefrontal cortex and that\u2019s an area of the brain that can be damaged in a traumatic brain injury,\u201d Sarah Tempest, a speech pathologist at the facility, explained Fox News.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we\u2019re really looking to improve with the games are executive-functioning skills,\u201d she said. \u201cThe things we are really addressing with that are attention, mental flexibility, self-regulation and working memory.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Uniquely \u201cVegas\u201d Solution<\/b><\/h2>\n

While the video-poker experience is essentially sedentary, the pre-frontal lobes are crucial to the brain\u2019s ability to orchestrate the movement of the body, and the decision-making processes of the game allow patients to relearn impulse control. It\u2019s a uniquely \u201cVegas\u201d solution to a problem.<\/p>\n

But not everyone is convinced. Psychiatrist and Fox News contributor Dr Keith Ablow is concerned it could lead to gambling addiction.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very important for the clinicians to tell the patients if they\u2019re going to pursue this path, keep in mind you might have impulse control problems,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Concern Over Dopamine Agonists<\/b><\/h2>\n

It\u2019s not the first time that the \u201cgambling habits\u201d of Parkinson\u2019s sufferers have been discussed in the news recently.<\/p>\n

There have been growing concerns that some of the drugs used to treat the disease can lead to sex and gambling addiction.<\/p>\n

Parkinson’s is a degenerative disease characterized by the death of nerve cells in the brain, which causes a lack of the chemical dopamine. This, in turn, interferes with movement and co-ordination. <\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s thought that around 10 percent of people who are prescribed dopamine agonists as treatment can end up with impulse control disorders that lead to drastic personality changes.<\/p>\n

Dopamine agonists mimic the effect of dopamine in the brain to suppress the symptoms of Parkinson\u2019s, but a minority of users have ended up with impulse disorders, like shopping addictions, hypersexuality or chronic gambling problems<\/a>. In some cases these have led to financial ruin, the destruction of relationships, and, in extreme case, imprisonment. \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Health care professionals have, in the past, been criticized for not fully understanding the potentially destructive side-effects of the drugs, or of not doing enough to warn patients\u2019 families about possible changes in their behavior.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You can\u2019t go very far in Las Vegas without bumping into a video poker machine, but now, it seems, they\u2019re installing them in the hospitals. Or at least in one hospital. Fox News reported this week that the HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital has introduced two video poker terminals, not for purposes of entertainment, but to help […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":50441,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,18],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nLas Vegas Hospital Installs Video Poker Machines to Help Parkinson\u2019s Rehab<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital finds a uniquely \u201cVegas\u201d solution to the challenge of the rehabilitation of sufferers of motor-neuron disease.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Las Vegas Hospital Installs Video Poker Machines to Help Parkinson\u2019s Rehab\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital finds a uniquely \u201cVegas\u201d solution to the challenge of the rehabilitation of sufferers of motor-neuron disease.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-05-16T21:00:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-05-16T20:53:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Nonwildpaytable_zps16316fc7.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Casino.org Staff Writer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Casino.org Staff Writer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/\",\"name\":\"Las Vegas Hospital Installs Video Poker Machines to Help Parkinson\u2019s Rehab\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Nonwildpaytable_zps16316fc7.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-05-16T21:00:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-05-16T20:53:26+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/8c48bf89dc86da77b4d856c7b3b78d77\"},\"description\":\"The HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital finds a uniquely \u201cVegas\u201d solution to the challenge of the rehabilitation of sufferers of motor-neuron disease.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/las-vegas-hospital-installs-video-poker-machines-help-parkinsons-rehab\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Nonwildpaytable_zps16316fc7.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Nonwildpaytable_zps16316fc7.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":576,\"caption\":\"Vegas\u2019 ubiquitous video poker machines are now installed at the HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital for use in the rehabilitation of patients with motor-neuron disease. 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