Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Determine the effects of animal assisted interactions (AAI) on activity and stress response in pediatric acute care settings. DESIGN: Randomized treatment control design. SETTING: Inpatient pediatric acute care units (PICU, CVICU and Hematology/Oncology). PATIENTS: Eighty pediatric inpatients (49% male) age 2-19 years. INTERVENTION: The AAI experimental group patients interacted with therapy dog teams for 5-10 min and the comparison group patients continued their current activity without an AAI visit. MEASUREMENT AND RESULTS: Salivary cortisol, activity level, and mood were assessed before and after AAI. AAI was associated with a decrease in cortisol levels and increases in mood and activity. CONCLUSION: AAI benefits children in pediatric acute care units.