The Department of Work Science, Business Economics and Environmental Psychology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 88, SE-230 53 Alnarp, Sweden.
Nature and Health, Region Dalarna, P.O. Box 712, SE-791 29 Falun, Sweden.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Apr 3;17(7):2431. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17072431.
People with neurological disorders suffer from poor mobility, poor balance, fatigue, isolation and monotonous everyday activities. Studies show that equine-assisted interventions can improve their mobility and balance, but could these kinds of interventions also increase participants' activity repertoire and self-assessed health, and reduce their fatigue? The study was conducted as a prospective, controlled study with three cohorts followed for one year: intervention group ( = 14), control group Passive ( = 29), and control group Active ( = 147). Participants in the study were affected by neurological disease or injury that limited their opportunities for an active everyday life. The intervention group lacked regular activities outside the home before the intervention, which consisted of riding once a week, led by a certified therapist. Control group Passive lacked regular activities outside the home, while control group Active had several activities outside the home per week. Primary outcome measures were activity repertoire measured with Occupational Value Assessment questionnaire. Secondary outcome measures were global self-assessed health measured with EuroQol-VAS and fatigue measured with Shirom-Melamed Burnout Questionnaire. The intervention group's activity repertoire and self-assessed health increased significantly compared to both baseline and the control groups. Equine-assisted interventions could help to improve the perceived value of everyday occupations and quality of life, as well as break isolation and increase the activity repertoire of people with neurological disorders.
患有神经障碍的人会出现行动不便、平衡感差、疲劳、孤立和日常活动单调等问题。研究表明，马术辅助干预可以改善他们的行动能力和平衡感，但这些干预是否也可以增加参与者的活动范围和自我评估的健康状况，减少他们的疲劳感呢？本研究采用前瞻性对照研究，分三个队列随访一年：干预组（=14）、被动对照组（=29）和主动对照组（=147）。研究参与者患有神经疾病或损伤，限制了他们积极参与日常生活的机会。干预组在干预前缺乏家庭以外的常规活动，干预内容为每周一次、由认证治疗师带领的骑马活动。被动对照组缺乏家庭以外的常规活动，而主动对照组每周有多项家庭以外的活动。主要结局指标是用职业价值评估问卷测量的活动范围。次要结局指标是用 EuroQol-VAS 测量的总体自我评估健康状况和用 Shirom-Melamed 倦怠问卷测量的疲劳程度。与基线和对照组相比，干预组的活动范围和自我评估健康状况显著增加。马术辅助干预可以帮助改善神经障碍患者对日常职业的感知价值和生活质量，打破孤立状态，增加活动范围。
