Animal-assisted therapy for dementia: a review of the literature

Filan, S. L.; Llewellyn-Jones, Robert H.

doi:10.1017/s1041610206003322

Cited by 196 publications

(149 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…One type of activity that can be provided at day-care centres is animal-assisted interventions (AAIs), and these have become widely used among older people and especially dementia patients, as shown in several reviews (7)(8)(9)(10)). An AAI is defined as 'a goal oriented and structured intervention that intentionally includes or incorporates animals in health, education and human service for the purpose of therapeutic gains in humans' (11).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of animal-assisted activity on balance and quality of life in home-dwelling persons with dementia

et al. 2016

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Purpose of the study was to examine if animal-assisted activity with a dog (AAA) in homedwelling persons with dementia (PWDs) attending day-care centers would have an effect on factors related to risk of fall accidents, with balance (Berg balance scale) and quality of life (Quality of Life in Late-stage Dementia) as main outcome. The project was conducted as a prospective and cluster-randomized multicenter trial with a follow-up. 16 adapted day-care centers recruited respectively 42 (intervention group) and 38 (control group with treatment as usual) home-dwelling PWDs. The intervention consisted of 30 min sessions with AAA led by a qualified dog handler twice a week for 12 weeks in groups of 3-7 participants. The significant positive effect on balance indicates that AAA might work as a multifactorial intervention in dementia care and have useful clinical implication by affecting risk of fall.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of animal-assisted activity on balance and quality of life in home-dwelling persons with dementia

et al. 2016

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“…Discussing the dog can help the patient open up by triggering positive memories or pleasant feelings [11]. Communication interventions and an optimistic atmosphere can have a positive impact on QoL and can also assist nursing staff in different caring situations [19] and social interactions [9,11,[20][21][22][23].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of dog-assisted intervention on quality of life in nursing home residents with dementia

Kårefjärd

Nordgren

2018

Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy

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Background: People with dementia often have a poor quality of life. Therefore, methods that can improve their life situation must be identified. One promising method is dog-assisted intervention. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the effects of dog-assisted intervention on quality of life in nursing home residents with dementia. Materials and methods: A one-group, pretest post-test study design was used. Quality of life was measured using the QUALID in 59 nursing home residents prior to and after a dog-assisted intervention. Non-parametric tests were used to analyze the data, and effect sizes were calculated. Results: The participants' total scores improved significantly between baseline and post-test 1 (p ¼ < 0.001) and worsened significantly at post-test 2 (p ¼ 0.025). The largest effect size was found for the item 'Verbalization suggests discomfort' (p ¼ 0.001). Conclusion:The results indicate that dog-assisted interventions can have positive effects on quality of life in nursing home residents with moderate to severe dementia. Significance: The results contribute to a growing knowledge base about non-pharmacological methods that can be used in dementia care. Occupational therapists should consider dogassisted interventions when planning activities that can reduce the illness burden and improve the quality of life for people with dementia.

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“…Animals can help in the rehabilitation of people recovering from illnesses or disabilities (Filan and Llewellyn-Jones 2006;Kamioka et al 2014). Interactions with animals can reduce patients' anxiety (Barker and Dawson 1998) or help children with autism in socializing tasks (Solomon 2010).…”

Section: Therapymentioning

confidence: 99%

Envisioning Future Playful Interactive Environments for Animals

Pons

Jaén

Catalá

2015

Gaming Media and Social Effects

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Play stands as one of the most natural and inherent behavior among the majority of living species, specifically humans and animals. Human play has evolved significantly over the years, and so have done the artifacts which allow us to play: from children playing tag games without any tools other than their bodies, to modern videogames using haptic and wearable devices to augment the playful experience. However, this ludic revolution has not been the same for the humans' closest companions, our pets. Recently, a new discipline inside the Human Computer Interaction (HCI) community, called Animal Computer Interaction (ACI), has focused its attention on improving animals' welfare using technology. Several works in the ACI field rely on playful interfaces to mediate this digital communication between animals and humans. Until now, the development of these interfaces only comprises a single goal or activity, and its adaptation to the animals' needs requires the developers' intervention. This work analyzes the existing approaches, proposing a more generic and autonomous system aimed at addressing several aspects of animal welfare at a time: Intelligent Playful Environments for Animals. The great potential of these systems is discussed, explaining how incorporating intelligent capabilities within playful environments could allow learning from the animals' behavior and automatically adapt the game to the animals' needs and preferences. The engaging playful activities created with these systems could serve different purposes and eventually improve animals' quality of life.

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Animal-assisted therapy for dementia: a review of the literature

Cited by 196 publications

References 31 publications

Effect of animal-assisted activity on balance and quality of life in home-dwelling persons with dementia

Effect of animal-assisted activity on balance and quality of life in home-dwelling persons with dementia

Effects of dog-assisted intervention on quality of life in nursing home residents with dementia

Envisioning Future Playful Interactive Environments for Animals

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