A recent study published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry in September 2021 has identified a potential biomarker for anorexia nervosa. The study, led by experts from Australia’s Swinburne Anorexia Nervosa Research Group, found that monitoring anxiety levels together with a specific type of fast eye movement, known as square wave jerks, could successfully identify people who have or are at risk of developing anorexia nervosa.
Square wave jerks are tiny, unintentional saccadic eye movements that can be identified by checking for brief flickering moments when a person’s eyes stray away from a target they are focusing on. The researchers gathered 80 women to test the validity of this potential biomarker, including 20 women with anorexia nervosa, 20 recovered anorexia nervosa patients at a normal weight, 20 healthy sisters of women with anorexia nervosa, and 20 healthy controls.
The researchers were able to distinguish anorexia nervosa patients from healthy controls with 92.5% accuracy when eye movements were coupled with an anxiety measure known as the State Trait Anxiety Inventory. Surprisingly, there was no difference in square wave jerk rates between anorexia nervosa patients, recovered anorexia nervosa patients, and healthy sisters of anorexia nervosa patients. This strongly suggests that the ailment has a hereditary component.
Researchers hope to be able to utilize eye twitching as a screening tool to identify patients who are at risk of developing anorexia nervosa. This research may allow doctors to screen individuals and provide support to help them avoid this serious disease.
In summary, the study found that monitoring anxiety levels together with square wave jerks, a type of fast eye movement, could successfully identify people who have or are at risk of developing anorexia nervosa. This potential biomarker has the potential to be used as a screening tool to identify patients who are at risk of developing anorexia nervosa, allowing doctors to provide support and prevent the onset of the disease.
