Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40293835›Full record

ArticleCritical care explorations2025

Pawsitive Care: Canine-Assisted Intervention for Anxiety in ICU Patients and Family Members: A Single-Center, Single-Arm Study.

Kathleen Cook, Clare Robertson, Kiran Gudivada, Imogen Mitchell, Mary Nourse, Megan M Hosey, Catherine Paterson, Sumeet Rai

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Critical care explorations, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Guideline
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Kathleen CookAdvance Practice Nurse, Canberra Health Services, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
Clare RobertsonRegistered Nurse, Canberra Hospital, Canberra Health Services, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
Kiran GudivadaSchool of Medicine and Psychology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
Imogen MitchellSchool of Medicine and Psychology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
Mary NourseIntensive Care Unit, Canberra Hospital, Canberra Health Services, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
Megan M HoseyJohns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD.
Catherine PatersonCaring Futures Institute, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
Sumeet RaiSchool of Medicine and Psychology, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-6996-2449

Funding

Synergy Nursing and Midwifery Research Centre, Canberra, Australia
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo investigate the effect of canine-assisted intervention (CAI) on anxiety symptoms among intensive care patients and their family members.

designProspective, single-center, single-arm, nonrandomized, within-subject study design.

settingTertiary hospital ICU. PATIENTS/SUBJECTS: Adult (≥ 16 yr) ICU patients and their family members.

interventionsIndividual CAI (therapy dog) sessions, lasting at least 15 minutes. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN

resultsPrimary outcome: change in Visual Analog Scale for Anxiety (VAS-A) among patients and family members; secondary outcomes (patient cohort): change in: 1) Numeric Pain Rating Scale, 2) physiologic vital signs, and 3) intervention-related adverse events. A total of 141 participants (70 patients and 71 family members) were recruited. The median (interquartile range [IQR]) age (yr) was 63 (49-71) for patients, and 51 (36-61) for family members. There was a significant reduction in anxiety scores after the intervention, with median (IQR) VAS-A scores changing from 5 (1-7) to 0 (0-4 [p < 0.001]) for the patient cohort and from 6 (5-8) to 3 (1-5 [p < 0.001]) for the family cohort. Majority of patients (56/70 [62%]) and family members (63/68 [93%]) demonstrated a greater than or equal to 2-point reduction in VAS-A scores. In terms of pain, median (IQR) scores among the patient cohort were also lower post-intervention (0 [0-5] vs. 0 [0-2]; p < 0.001). There were no statistically significant changes in physiologic vital signs (heart rate, respiratory rate, and systolic blood pressure) among patients following the intervention. Additionally, there were no reported dog bites, scratches, or other adverse events during CAI.

conclusionsCAI offers immediate therapeutic benefits in reducing anxiety symptoms in ICU patients and their family members with no observed adverse effects. It may also have a potential role as an adjunctive therapy for pain management in ICU patients. Further research should explore the influence on longer-term psychologic outcomes for ICU patients and family members.

Indexed as

Animal Assisted TherapyAnxietyCritical CareFamilyAdultAgedAnimalsDogsFemaleHumansIntensive Care UnitsMaleMiddle AgedPain MeasurementProspective Studiesanimal-assisted interventionanxietycanine-assisted interventioncritical carefamily

Identifiers

PMID40293835
PMCPMC12040009

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.