Department of Behavioral Sciences at the Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar, University of Porto, Portugal.
Center for Health Technology and Services Research - CINTESIS, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
Pain Med. 2021 Dec 11;22(12):2987-2997. doi: 10.1093/pm/pnaa438.
This study explored the role of companion dogs for psychological adjustment to pain in patients with fibromyalgia with different levels of social support. It also considered the potential moderating effects of the quality of the owner-dog relationship and the use of interactions with dogs as a coping strategy.
A cross-sectional approach was followed using an online questionnaire.
Linear regression analyses were performed on data obtained from 106 participants (dog owners and non-owners). Sub-analyses were performed on 64 dog owners.
Complex associations were observed between human social support, dog ownership and anxiety/depression levels. For participants with low levels of social support, owning a dog was associated with higher levels of anxiety and depression. In contrast, for moderate and high levels of social support, owning a dog was associated with lower levels of anxiety and depression. Sub-analyses showed that participants in this study actively used interactions with companion dogs to manage their pain more frequently than other pain coping strategies. Among those interactions, patting and stroking the dog to cope with pain was associated with lower anxiety levels, even after adjusting for social support. Emotional closeness with the dog was associated with lower depression levels.
Obtained results highlight the importance to go beyond mere ownership when addressing the effects of companion dogs and suggest that the development of emotional ties with companion dogs and the active use of interactions with these animals to cope with pain may contribute to better psychological adjustment in patients with fibromyalgia, regardless of human social support.
本研究探讨了伴侣犬在不同社会支持水平的纤维肌痛患者的疼痛心理调整中的作用。还考虑了主人-犬关系质量和将与犬互动作为应对策略的潜在调节作用。
采用在线问卷的横断面方法。
对 106 名参与者（犬主和非犬主）的数据进行线性回归分析。对 64 名犬主进行了亚分析。
人类社会支持、犬主身份和焦虑/抑郁水平之间存在复杂的关联。对于社会支持水平较低的参与者，拥有一只狗与更高的焦虑和抑郁水平相关。相比之下，对于中等到高水平的社会支持，拥有一只狗与较低的焦虑和抑郁水平相关。亚分析表明，与其他疼痛应对策略相比，本研究的参与者更频繁地使用与伴侣犬的互动来管理疼痛。在这些互动中，通过抚摸和轻拍狗来应对疼痛与较低的焦虑水平相关，即使在调整了社会支持后也是如此。与狗的情感亲密与较低的抑郁水平相关。
研究结果强调了在探讨伴侣犬的影响时不仅仅要关注拥有宠物的重要性，并表明与伴侣犬建立情感联系并积极利用与这些动物的互动来应对疼痛可能有助于改善纤维肌痛患者的心理调整，而与人类社会支持无关。
