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Anxiety

Reduced Threat-Related Neural Efficiency: A Possible Biomarker for Pediatric Anxiety Disorders

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Researchers at Tel Aviv University have found that reduced threat-related neural efficiency may be a biomarker for pediatric anxiety disorders. The study, published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, evaluated neural efficiency in relation to anxiety diagnosis and treatment response in a group of 103 youths with an anxiety disorder diagnosis and 103 youths with no psychiatric diagnosis. The results showed that neural efficiency was significantly negatively related to anxiety, and although it did not change after cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), lower neural efficiency at baseline was significantly associated with poorer treatment response in a subset of 80 anxious youths who underwent CBT.

Key Takeaways:

  • The study evaluated neural efficiency in 206 youths, aged 12.5 and 13.4 years, with and without anxiety disorders, respectively.
  • Neural efficiency was calculated as partial correlations between intrinsic and task-related functional connectivity patterns across the whole brain.
  • The study found that neural efficiency demonstrated satisfactory test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.65) in healthy youths over a period of 11 to 18 weeks.
  • Neural efficiency was significantly negatively related to anxiety as both a diagnostic category (t=2.62, d=0.29) and a symptom dimension (r=-0.18).
  • Lower neural efficiency at baseline was significantly associated with poorer treatment response in a subset of 80 anxious youths who underwent CBT (b=-11.88, ch=9.20).
  • Neural efficiency, measured as network reconfiguration between rest and task, holds promise as a biomarker in pediatric anxiety.
  • The study suggests that neural efficiency might aid in patient stratification and offer a target for interventions aimed at enhancing CBT efficacy.

Statistics:

  • 103 youths with an anxiety disorder diagnosis
  • 103 youths with no psychiatric diagnosis
  • 80 anxious youths who underwent CBT
  • Neural efficiency was significantly negatively related to anxiety (t=2.62, d=0.29)
  • Lower neural efficiency at baseline was significantly associated with poorer treatment response in a subset of 80 anxious youths who underwent CBT (b=-11.88, ch=9.20)
  • Neural efficiency demonstrated satisfactory test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.65) in healthy youths over a period of 11 to 18 weeks
  • The study involved 206 youths, aged 12.5 and 13.4 years, with and without anxiety disorders, respectively

Sources:

  • American Journal of Psychiatry, 2025.
  • American Journal of Psychiatry can be contacted at: Amer Psychiatric Publishing, Inc, 800 Maine Ave SW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20024, USA.
  • Reut Naim, School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
  • Julia O. Linke, Simona P. Haller, Parmis Khosravi, Beck Scheinberg, Meghan E. Byrne, Anita Harrewijn, Ellen Leibenluft, Melissa A. Brotman, Anderson M. Winkler, and Daniel S. Pine.
  • Amer Psychiatric Publishing, Inc, 800 Maine Ave SW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20024, USA.
  • Mental Health Weekly Digest, October 20, 2025; p 284.

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