Adorable study: 'Therapeutic dogs' relieve physical pain in just 10 minutes

Some hospitals have provided 'therapy dogs' to help patients relieve stress. Now, a Canadian study shows that this adorable animal can also help people reduce physical pain, and this effect appears after just 10 minutes of exposure to them.

Therapy dogs visit patients in the hospital.

In the study conducted by researchers at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada, more than 200 patients in the emergency room were divided into 2 groups for observation.

One group was given 10 minutes with 'Therapeutic Dog', the other group was a control group without this treatment. Patients in both groups rated their pain on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the worst pain).

The results showed that the patients participating in the 'Therapeutic Dog' application rated pain levels significantly lower than those in the control group. These findings suggest that the 'Therapeutic Dog' intervention had a positive effect on pain relief for the participants.

According to Professor Colleen Dell, who led the study, the research shows that pets are an important part of human health.

He said studies like this could allow people to stop asking if 'Therapeutic Dogs' are medically helpful and start thinking about how they can better support and integrate with medical team.

In response to the notion that using dogs can spread disease and endanger hospital hygiene, Professor Dell shared that medical facilities and medical staff can use 'Treatment dogs'. material' in a hygienic way to make the system work better.

The above study used a team of Therapy dogs, including a therapist and St. John Ambulance (Canada's premier first aid charity), is deemed appropriate for public visitation. In addition to the 'Therapeutic Dog' care program, these activities include hand hygiene before and after the examination, protective bedding for the surfaces the dogs come into contact with, an ambulance, and placing a A poster stands by the entrance when therapy dogs are available to inform people who do not wish to come into contact with dogs.

In addition, the conclusion from the study states that significant changes in anxiety, depression and happiness were also observed in the 'Therapeutic Dog' intervention compared with the control group. 

The findings of this new study contribute important knowledge about the potential value of 'Therapeutic Dogs' in the emergency department (ED) in influencing patients' pain experience and measures. associated with anxiety, depression, and happiness.

The results of the study were published in the journal PLOS One on March 9.