Gee Nancy R, Townsend Lisa, Friedmann Erika, Barker Sandra, Mueller Megan
Center for Human-Animal Interaction, Department of Psychiatry, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, VA 23298, USA.
Department of Organizational Systems and Adult Health, University of Maryland Baltimore School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
Healthcare (Basel). 2025 Jul 25;13(15):1819. doi: 10.3390/healthcare13151819.
: Aging adults are at an increased risk of depression, anxiety, and poor mood. Research indicates that interacting with companion animals may benefit vulnerable older adults' mental health. : This study randomly assigned 44 medical inpatients (59+ years) to one of three 20 min daily conditions over 3 days: interactions with a dog and handler (AAI: animal-assisted intervention), handler-only control (CC: conversational control), or usual care (UC). Participants were measured at baseline, daily pre/post-intervention, on day 5 post-intervention, and at 1- and 6-month follow-ups. : The results show a significant change in trajectory for the AAI group from pre- to post-intervention for anxiety and mood. Study satisfaction was significantly better in the AAI group than in the UC condition. Depression scores did not change significantly. The effects were not sustained from day 1 to day 5 or to either follow-up. : The results suggest that short-term interactions with dogs may provide immediate improvements in anxiety and mood, and dog presence adds value above that of the handler alone.
老年人患抑郁症、焦虑症和情绪低落的风险更高。研究表明，与伴侣动物互动可能有益于易受伤害的老年人的心理健康。
本研究将44名住院患者（59岁及以上）随机分为三组，在3天内每天进行20分钟的干预：与狗及训练员互动（AAI：动物辅助干预）、仅与训练员接触的对照组（CC：对话对照组）或常规护理（UC）。在基线、干预前/后每日、干预后第5天以及1个月和6个月随访时对参与者进行测量。
结果显示，AAI组从干预前到干预后焦虑和情绪的轨迹有显著变化。AAI组的研究满意度明显高于UC组。抑郁评分没有显著变化。从第1天到第5天以及到任何一次随访，效果都没有持续。
结果表明，与狗的短期互动可能会立即改善焦虑和情绪，而且狗的存在比训练员单独存在更有价值。
