Animal-Assisted Therapy Supports Stress Reduction in Veterans

by | Feb 11, 2020 | 2018, Alternative Therapies, Animal-Assisted Therapies, Stress

Written by Angeline A. De Leon, Staff Writer. Study suggests that incorporating a facility dog into palliative care may reduce stress in hospitalized veterans.

pets mental healthAn emerging body of evidence brings light to the power of animal therapy for patients. Companionship between dogs and humans is linked to better physical and emotional health in older adults 1, and research shows that the presence of therapy dogs during chemotherapy, for example, not only decreases depressive symptoms in patients, but also boosts their oxygen saturation 2. In psychiatric patients receiving electroconvulsive therapy, animal-assisted therapy (AAT) was found to dramatically reduce fear by almost 40% and anxiety by nearly 20% 3. Interaction with animals is not only associated with benefits for emotional well-being 4, but also favorable effects on physical health, including improvement in blood pressure (BP) and cardiovascular reactivity 5-7. AAT may be an especially promising intervention tool for palliative care patients who have a high need for comfort. In an exploratory study 8 published in the American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (2018), researchers introduced AAT to a population of veterans in palliative care to examine if interactions with a therapy dog could effectively reduce salivary cortisol, BP, and other physiological biomarkers of stress.

A cross-over repeated-measures study was carried out in a group of 25 veterans (mean age = 65.32 years) admitted to palliative care. Participants were randomly assigned either to the control condition (involving unstructured palliative care visits with a clinical psychologist) or AAT involving 20 minutes with a trained facility dog (gentle petting and talking with dog) plus time with a clinical psychologist. Following a 24-hour washout period, subjects then completed the alternative arm of the study. At the time of consent, questionnaires assessing coping strategy, quality of life, loneliness, and perceived stress were administered. At the immediate beginning and immediate end of each session and 30 minutes after, BP, heart rate (HR), and salivary samples were taken. Salivary biomarkers of cortisol, alpha-amylase (α-amylase), and immunoglobulin A (IgA) levels were measured.

Analyses revealed a significant decrease in cortisol from the beginning of the AAT session to 30-minutes after (mean change = -0.32 +/- 0.44, t = -3.05, p = 0.007). A similar decrease was apparent for the control condition (mean change = -0.42 +/- 0.70, t = -2.32, p = 0.036). HR was seen to also significantly decrease from the time before treatment to 30-minutes post-treatment for both the AAI (mean change = -3.400 +/- 3.911, t = -3.367, p = 0.0046) and control conditions (mean change = -5.769 +/- 7.029, t = -2.960, p = 0.0119). No significant associations were detected between physiological biomarkers of stress and any of the questionnaire scores.

The current investigation reports initial evidence suggesting the feasibility of using AAT in palliative care settings for veterans. In line with previous reports linking therapeutic animals with stress reduction and healing support 9,10, results of the study indicate that the presence of a therapy dog in conjunction with standard palliative care from a clinical psychologist was effective in reducing stress levels. Analyses indicated a significant diminishment in both HR and salivary cortisol levels for the AAT group in the span of just one session. According to questionnaire data, veteran patients also reported a positive experience with AAT and showed interest in additional visits. Limitations of the study pertain to the overall small sample size, the lack of generalizability of results due to the single-site study design, and the inability to include blinding of participants or researchers. Additional studies are needed to compare AAT as a stand-alone treatment against an active control condition. Based on study findings thus far, however, the efficacy of AAT appears promising, especially in the veteran patient population.

Source: Krause-Parello, Cheryl A., Cari Levy, Elizabeth Holman, and John E. Kolassa. “Effects of VA facility dog on hospitalized veterans seen by a palliative care psychologist: An innovative approach to impacting stress indicators.” American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine® 35, no. 1 (2018): 5-14.

© The Author(s) 2016

Posted February 10, 2020.

Angeline A. De Leon, MA, graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2010, completing a bachelor’s degree in psychology, with a concentration in neuroscience. She received her master’s degree from The Ohio State University in 2013, where she studied clinical neuroscience within an integrative health program. Her specialized area of research involves the complementary use of neuroimaging and neuropsychology-based methodologies to examine how lifestyle factors, such as physical activity and meditation, can influence brain plasticity and enhance overall connectivity.

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