Sheikh Abu Baker, Javed Nismat, Leyba Katarina, Khair Ali Hamza, Ijaz Zainab, Dar Aimen Asim, Hanif Hamza, Farooq Asif, Shekhar Rahul
Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
Shifa College of Medicine, Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan.
Geriatrics (Basel). 2021 Oct 1;6(4):96. doi: 10.3390/geriatrics6040096.
Delirium leading to agitation is a common issue in elderly people and patients with underlying neurocognitive impairment. Despite use of medications to treat agitation, polypharmacy is a major concern and might lead to multiple side effects in this patient population. Therefore, it is imperative to investigate non-pharmacological methods that can provide solutions to the problem. The objective of this review was to evaluate the impact of pet-assisted therapy on elderly patients, with a major focus on agitation and delirium. For the purposes of this study, a scoping review was performed using PubMed, Google Scholar, and ClinicalTrials. We reviewed literature from 1980 to 2021. Out of the 31 studies reviewed, 14 commented on agitation with respect to pet-assisted interventions. Of these, eight studies (57%) reported a statistically significant reduction in agitation and/or delirium in patients who were exposed to pet therapy. Pet-assisted therapy can improve the standardized care in hospital-based settings for patients with neurocognitive impairment because of better companionship, reduced agitation and mood disorders, and better stability of hemodynamic status. These interventions can pave the way for better patient and hospital satisfaction.
谵妄导致的躁动不安是老年人和患有潜在神经认知障碍患者的常见问题。尽管使用药物治疗躁动，但多重用药是一个主要问题，可能会在这一患者群体中导致多种副作用。因此，研究能够解决该问题的非药物方法势在必行。本综述的目的是评估宠物辅助疗法对老年患者的影响，主要关注躁动和谵妄。为了本研究的目的，使用PubMed、谷歌学术和临床试验进行了一项范围综述。我们回顾了1980年至2021年的文献。在31项被综述的研究中，14项评论了宠物辅助干预对躁动的影响。其中，8项研究（57%）报告称，接受宠物疗法的患者的躁动和/或谵妄在统计学上有显著降低。宠物辅助疗法可以改善医院环境中对神经认知障碍患者的标准化护理，因为它能提供更好的陪伴、减少躁动和情绪障碍，以及更好地稳定血流动力学状态。这些干预措施可以为提高患者和医院满意度铺平道路。
