Dog-Assisted Therapy for Children and Adolescents With Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders a Randomized Controlled Pilot Study

Raquel Vidal, Laura Vidal, Francesc Ristol, Eva Domènec, Marta Segú, Cristina Vico, Núria Gomez-Barros, Josep Antoni Ramos-Quiroga, Raquel Vidal, Laura Vidal, Francesc Ristol, Eva Domènec, Marta Segú, Cristina Vico, Núria Gomez-Barros, Josep Antoni Ramos-Quiroga

Abstract

Objective: The rationale of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of dog-assisted therapy (DAT) combined with pharmacological treatment in children and adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).

Method: We conducted a randomized, rater-blinded, controlled pilot trial in a cohort of 33 children and adolescents with FASD. Participants were randomly assigned either to DAT group (n = 17) or Treatment as Usual (TAU control group) (n = 16).

Results: Of the initial 39 participants enrolled, 33 completed treatment. A mixed-effects model analysis revealed that participants who were assigned to the DAT group experienced significantly improvements on social skills (SSIS-P social skills: p = 0.02, d = 0.8), reductions on externalizing symptoms (CBCL externalizing: p = 0.03; d = 0.56), and lower scores on FASD severity (CGI-S clinician: p = 0.001, d = 0.5).

Conclusion: DAT is a promising adjunctive treatment for children and adolescents with FASD.

Clinical trial registration: Dog-assisted therapy for children and adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: a randomized controlled pilot study; https://ichgcp.net/clinical-trials-registry/NCT04038164" title="See in ClinicalTrials.gov">NCT04038164.

Keywords: FASD; animal-assisted therapy; dog-assisted therapy; human-animal interactions; psychosocial treatments.

Copyright © 2020 Vidal, Vidal, Ristol, Domènec, Segú, Vico, Gomez-Barros and Ramos-Quiroga.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Flow diagram.

References

    1. Boseck J. J., Andrew S. D., Cassady J. C., Holmes F., Gelder B. (2015). Cognitive and adaptive skill profile differences in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder with and without comorbid fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Appl. Neuropsychol. Child 4 230–236. 10.1080/21622965.2013.877392
    1. Calcaterra V., Veggiotti P., Palestrini C., De Giorgis V., Raschetti R., Tumminelli M., et al. (2015). Post-operative benefits of animal-assisted therapy in pediatric surgery: a randomised study. PLoS One 10:125813 10.1371/journal.pone.0125813
    1. Domènec E., Ristol F. (2012). CTAC METHOD, Animal Assisted Therapy: Techniques and Exercices for Dog Assisted Interventions. Barcelona: FC Barcelona.
    1. Elmacı D. T., Cevizci S. (2015). Dog-assisted therapies and activities in rehabilitation of children with cerebral palsy and physical and mental disabilities. Intern. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 12 5046–5060. 10.3390/ijerph120505046
    1. Estrada M.-D., Rajmil L., Serra-Sutton V., Tebé C., Alonso J., Herdman M., et al. (2010). Reliability and validity of the spanish version of the child health and illness profile (CHIP) Child-edition, parent report form (CHIP-CE/PRF). Health Q. Life Outcom. 8:78 10.1186/1477-7525-8-78
    1. First M. B., Gibbon M., Spitzer R. L., Williams J. B. W., Bejamin L. S. (1999). Entrevista Clínica Estructurada Para Los Trastorno de Personalidad Del Eje II Del DSM-IV. Barcelona: Masson.
    1. Fung S., Leung A. (2014). Pilot study investigating the role of therapy dogs in facilitating social interaction among children with autism. J. Contemp. Psychother. 44 253–262. 10.1007/s10879-014-9274-z
    1. Gresham F. M., Elliott S. N. (2008). Social Skills Improvement System Rating Scales Manual. Minneapolis: Pearson.
    1. Hill J., Ziviani J., Driscoll C., Cawdell-Smith J. (2019). Can canine-assisted interventions affect the social behaviours of children on the autism spectrum? a systematic review. Rev. J. Autism Dev. Disord. 6 13–25. 10.1007/s40489-018-0151-7
    1. Hoagwood K. E., Acri M., Morrissey M., Peth-Pierce R. (2017). Animal-assisted therapies for youth with or at risk for mental health problems: a systematic review. Appl. Dev. Sci. 21 1–13. 10.1080/10888691.2015.1134267
    1. Hoyme H. E., Wendy O. K., Elliott A. J., Blankenship J., Buckley D., Marais A., et al. (2016). Updated clinical guidelines for diagnosing fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Pediatrics 138:4256 10.1542/peds.2015-4256
    1. Jones M. G., Rice S. M., Cotton S. M. (2019). Incorporating animal-assisted therapy in mental health treatments for adolescents: a systematic review of canine assisted psychotherapy. PLoS One 14:e0210761 10.1371/journal.pone.0210761
    1. Kaufman J., Birmaher B., Brent D., Rao U., Flynn C., Moreci P., et al. (1997). Schedule for affective disorders and schizophrenia for school-age children-present and lifetime version (K-SADS-PL): initial reliability and validity data. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 36 980–988. 10.1097/00004583-199707000-199707021
    1. Keil V., Paley B., Frankel F., O’Connor M. (2010). Impact of a social skills intervention on the hostile attributions of children with prenatal alcohol exposure. Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. 34 231–241. 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2009.01086.x
    1. May P., Christina A., Chambers D., Wendy O., Kalberg Y., Zellner J., et al. (2018). Prevalence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in 4 US communities. JAMA 319:474 10.1001/jama.2017.21896
    1. McCullough A., Ashleigh R., Molly A. J., Mary G., Olson J., Pawar A., et al. (2018). Measuring the effects of an animal-assisted intervention for pediatric oncology patients and their parents: a multisite randomized controlled trial [formula: see text]. J. Pediatr. Oncol. Nurs. 35 159–177. 10.1177/1043454217748586
    1. Muela A., Balluerka N., Amiano N., Caldentey M. A., Aliri J. (2017). Animal-assisted psychotherapy for young people with behavioural problems in residential care. Clin. Psychol. Psychother. 24 O1485–O1494. 10.1002/cpp.2112
    1. Nash K., Sara S., Greenbaum R., Weiner J., Koren G., Rovet J. (2015). Improving executive functioning in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Child Neuropsychol. 21 191–209. 10.1080/09297049.2014.889110
    1. Nash K., Sara S., Hayyah C., Rovet J. (2018). Preliminary findings that a targeted intervention leads to altered brain function in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Brain Sci. 8 1–17. 10.3390/brainsci8010007
    1. NIMH (1985). CGI clinical global impression scale. Psychopharmacol. Bull. 21 839–844.
    1. O’Connor M. J., Frankel F., Paley B., Schonfeld A. M., Carpenter E., Laugeson E. A., et al. (2006). A controlled social skills training foe present study war children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. J. Consult. Clin. Psychol. 74 639–648. 10.1037/0022-006X.74.4.639
    1. Popova S., Lange S., Probst C., Gmel G., Rehm J. (2017). Estimation of national, regional, and global prevalence of alcohol use during pregnancy and fetal alcohol syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Glob. Health 17 1–10. 10.1016/S2214-109X(17)30021-30029
    1. Rasmussen C., Bisanz J. (2009). Executive functioning in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: profiles and age-related differences. Child Neuropsychol. 15 201–215. 10.1080/09297040802385400
    1. Schuck S. E. B., Heather L., Johnson M., Abdullah M., Stehli A., Aubrey H., et al. (2018). The role of animal assisted intervention on improving self-esteem in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Front. Pediatr. 6:300 10.3389/fped.2018.00300
    1. Schuck S. E. B., Natasha A., Emmerson B., Aubrey H., Fine R., Kimberley D. (2015). Canine-assisted therapy for children with ADHD. J. Atten. Disord. 19 125–137. 10.1177/1087054713502080
    1. Silva N. B., Osório F. L. (2018). Impact of an animal-assisted therapy programme on physiological and psychosocial variables of paediatric oncology patients. PLoS One 13:e0194731 10.1371/journal.pone.0194731
    1. Spitzer R., Robert L., Gibbon M. (1996). SCID-I, Versión Clínica. Entrevista Clínica Estructurada Para Los Trastornos Del Eje I Del DSM. Barcelona: Masson.
    1. Stefanini M. C., Martino A., Allori P., Galeotti F., Tani F. (2015). The use of animal-assisted therapy in adolescents with acute mental disorders: a randomized controlled study. Complement. Ther. Clin. Pract. 21 42–46. 10.1016/j.ctcp.2015.01.001
    1. Wechsler D. (1981). Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised. Psychological Corporation. Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-III), 3rd Edn, San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation.
    1. Wechsler D. (2003). Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th Edn, San Antonio: Harcourt Assessment.
    1. Wells A. M., Chasnoff J., Schmidt C. A., Telford E., Schwartz L. D. (2012). Neurocognitive habilitation therapy for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: an adaptation of the alert program. Am. J. Occupat. Ther. 66 24–34. 10.5014/ajot.2012.002691
    1. Weyrauch D., Schwartz M., Hart B., Klug M. G., Burd L. (2017). Comorbid mental disorders in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: a systematic review. J. Dev. Behav. Pediatr. 38 283–291. 10.1097/DBP.0000000000000440
    1. Wijker C., Leontjevas R., Spek A., Enders-Slegers M.-J. (2019). Effects of dog assisted therapy for adults with autism spectrum disorder: an exploratory randomized controlled trial. J. Autism Dev. Disord. 10.1007/s10803-019-03971-9 [Epub ahead of print].

Source: PubMed

Sponsorit ja yhteistyökumppanit

Sairaudet

Huumeiden interventiot

3
Tilaa