Changes of Oxytocin and Serotonin Values in Dialysis Patients after Animal Assisted Activities (AAAs) with a Dog—A Preliminary Study

Our study aimed to measure the levels of serotonin and oxytocin in patients affected by end-stage renal disease (ESRD), undergoing dialysis and participating in a program of animal-assisted activities (AAAs) with a dog. Ten patients with comparable levels of ESRD were enrolled. A blood sample was ta...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Animals (Basel) 2019-08, Vol.9 (8), p.526
Main Authors: Menna, Lucia Francesca, Santaniello, Antonio, Amato, Alessia, Ceparano, Giuseppe, Di Maggio, Annamaria, Sansone, Mario, Formisano, Pietro, Cimmino, Ilaria, Perruolo, Giuseppe, Fioretti, Alessandro
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
animal-assisted activities (AAAs)
Autism
Blood
Dialysis
dog co-therapist
dog-assisted therapy
Dogs
End-stage renal disease
Fear & phobias
Hemodialysis
ISO standards
Kidney diseases
Kidneys
Levels
Meetings
Oxytocin
Pain
Post traumatic stress disorder
Psychologists
Serotonin
social cooperation
Socialization
Studies
Variance analysis
Veterinary medicine
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Summary:Our study aimed to measure the levels of serotonin and oxytocin in patients affected by end-stage renal disease (ESRD), undergoing dialysis and participating in a program of animal-assisted activities (AAAs) with a dog. Ten patients with comparable levels of ESRD were enrolled. A blood sample was taken before the start of the study in order to establish basal levels. Eleven meetings were held once a week for 3 months during the last hour of dialysis, and blood samples were collected before and after AAAs. Two more meetings, one month apart from each other, were held two months later without the dog but with the same veterinarian zootherapist. Blood was drawn at the beginning and at the end of each meeting. The samples were then processed for the measurement of serotonin and oxytocin, and data obtained were analysed using analysis of variance with mixed effect models. The results show an increasing level of both serotonin and oxytocin between subsequent meetings with the dog and an increasing trend of inter-intervention levels. Overall, the results suggest that AAAs lead to modifications of serotonin and oxytocin levels, which are also accompanied by behavioural changes of patients.
ISSN:2076-2615
2076-2615
DOI:10.3390/ani9080526