Effects of 12-Week Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy on Brain and Body Responses in Women with Restrictive Anorexia Nervosa Study Using EEG, Skin Response, and Eye-Tracking Assessments

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are evaluating the effects of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy CBT on brain activity, physiological responses, and attention in females aged 18 to 35 with restrictive-type anorexia nervosa AN. This trial compares a 12-week CBT program to a waitlist group receiving no active treatment. The study aims to understand how CBT influences neural markers related to attention and emotional processing, physiological arousal, and visual attention to food and body images, helping to develop biomarker-informed treatments for AN. Participants in the CBT group will attend weekly 60-minute individual therapy sessions targeting body image distortion, maladaptive thoughts, emotional regulation, and food-related avoidance behaviors. Both the CBT and waitlist groups undergo baseline and 12-week follow-up assessments including electroencephalography EEG, galvanic skin response GSR, and eye-tracking while viewing images related to self-appearance, food, and other female bodies. The study will measure changes in neural signals such as P300, Late Positive Potential, and frontal alpha asymmetry, as well as physiological arousal and gaze patterns. Throughout the study, participants complete psychometric questionnaires assessing eating disorder symptoms, depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and emotion regulation at baseline and after 12 weeks. Researchers will monitor neural and physiological changes alongside behavioral outcomes to understand CBTs impact. The total participation involves assessments before and after the 12-week intervention or observation period, providing insights into objective biomarkers of therapeutic change in AN.

CBT Effects on Neural, Physiological, and Attentional Responses in Anorexia Nervosa