South Korean researchers say they have proven “eyeball exercises” can be effective in treating post-traumatic stress disorder(PTSD).
 
Led by Dr. Shin Hee-Sup, researchers at the Institute for Basic Science(IBS) on Thursday announced their findings, locating the neural circuit that mediates persistent attenuation of fear.
 
After performing experiments on mice, the researchers said Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR treatment, can suppress brain activities related to accessing and processing of traumatic memories.

The psycho therapeutic regimen using alternating bilateral sensory stimulation(ABS) has been used to treat PTSD patients. However, the neural basis that underlies the long-lasting effect of the treatment had previously not been identified.

Researchers said they successfully induced a lasting reduction of fear in mice by pairing visual ABS with conditioned stimuli during fear extinction.
  
The findings were published on the international journal of science Nature online.