Is animal-assisted therapy for minimally conscious state beneficial? : a case study

Boitier, Jacqueline Patrice; Huber, Marion; Saleh, Christian; Kerry-Krause, Matthew J.; Hund-Georgiadis, Margret; Hediger, Karin

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://doi.org/10.21256/zhaw-26025

Publication type:	Article in scientific journal
Type of review:	Peer review (publication)
Title:	Is animal-assisted therapy for minimally conscious state beneficial? : a case study
Authors:	Boitier, Jacqueline Patrice Huber, Marion Saleh, Christian Kerry-Krause, Matthew J. Hund-Georgiadis, Margret Hediger, Karin
et. al:	No
DOI:	10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491 10.21256/zhaw-26025
Published in:	Frontiers in Psychiatry
Volume(Issue):	11
Issue:	491
Issue Date:	2020
Publisher / Ed. Institution:	Frontiers Research Foundation
ISSN:	1664-0640
Language:	English
Subjects:	Animal-assisted therapy; Behavior; Disorder of consciousness; Human-animal interaction; Minimally conscious state; Neurorehabilitation
Subject (DDC):	615.8515: Occupational therapy 616.8: Neurology, diseases of nervous system
Abstract:	Objective: The goal of this single case study was to qualitatively investigate the effects of animal-assisted therapy in a patient in a minimally conscious state. Method: We present a 28-year-old female patient in a minimally conscious state following polytrauma after a sports accident leading to cerebral fat embolism causing multiple CNS ischemic lesions. She received eight animal-assisted therapy sessions and eight paralleled control therapy sessions over 4 weeks. We investigated the reactions of the patient during these sessions via qualitative behavior analysis. Results: The patient showed a broader variability and higher quality of behavior during animal-assisted therapy compared to control therapy sessions. Conclusion: The observed behavioral changes showed higher arousal and increased awareness in the presence of an animal. The presented case supports the assumption that animal-assisted therapy can be a beneficial treatment approach for patients in a minimally conscious state.
URI:	https://digitalcollection.zhaw.ch/handle/11475/26025
Fulltext version:	Published version
License (according to publishing contract):	CC BY 4.0: Attribution 4.0 International
Departement:	School of Health Sciences
Organisational Unit:	Institute of Public Health (IPH)
Appears in collections:	Publikationen Gesundheit

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Boitier, J. P., Huber, M., Saleh, C., Kerry-Krause, M. J., Hund-Georgiadis, M., & Hediger, K. (2020). Is animal-assisted therapy for minimally conscious state beneficial? : a case study. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11(491). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491

Boitier, J.P. et al. (2020) ‘Is animal-assisted therapy for minimally conscious state beneficial? : a case study’, Frontiers in Psychiatry, 11(491). Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491.

J. P. Boitier, M. Huber, C. Saleh, M. J. Kerry-Krause, M. Hund-Georgiadis, and K. Hediger, “Is animal-assisted therapy for minimally conscious state beneficial? : a case study,” Frontiers in Psychiatry, vol. 11, no. 491, 2020, doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491.

BOITIER, Jacqueline Patrice, Marion HUBER, Christian SALEH, Matthew J. KERRY-KRAUSE, Margret HUND-GEORGIADIS und Karin HEDIGER, 2020. Is animal-assisted therapy for minimally conscious state beneficial? : a case study. Frontiers in Psychiatry. 2020. Bd. 11, Nr. 491. DOI 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491

Boitier, Jacqueline Patrice, Marion Huber, Christian Saleh, Matthew J. Kerry-Krause, Margret Hund-Georgiadis, and Karin Hediger. 2020. “Is Animal-Assisted Therapy for Minimally Conscious State Beneficial? : A Case Study.” Frontiers in Psychiatry 11 (491). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491.

Boitier, Jacqueline Patrice, et al. “Is Animal-Assisted Therapy for Minimally Conscious State Beneficial? : A Case Study.” Frontiers in Psychiatry, vol. 11, no. 491, 2020, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00491.