[Gambling and pathological gambling in Hungary].

Gambling and pathological gambling are typically out of focus research area in Hungary. Besides the little evidence available in this field, it can be stated that both society and policy decision makers ignore the problems regarding this phenomenon. Gambling is rather considered to be a segment of the market than a behavior with possible harmful consequences or a mental and behavior disorder . The author reviews current knowledge on gambling and pathological gambling, including market data, research results and treatment options and highlights the most important steps which would be necessary in order to develop this research area.