Table 3.
Summary of studies included in the review
| First author (year) | Patients | Study design | Sessions | Intervention | Control | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N | Mean age (years) | Gender (% male) | Target group | Duration (weeks) | Number | Length (minutes) | ||||
| Lutwack-Bloom (2005) [38] | 68 | 69.9 | 41.8 | Residents living in long-term care setting | Pre-post | 24 | 72 | 15–20 | Visit from a therapy dog | Visit without dog |
| Majic (2013) [39] | 54 | 81.7 | 29.6 | Residents with dementia | Pre-post | 10 | 10 | 45 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Travers (2013) [40] | 55 | 85 | 21.8 | Residents with dementia | Randomized control | 11 | 22 | 40–50 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Bono (2015) [41] | 24 | 82.1 | 33.3 | Non-hospitalized patients with low-mild Alzheimer’s disease | Randomized control | 32 | 16 | 60 | Dog assisted therapy | No active intervention |
| Friedmann (2015) [42] | 40 | 80.7 | 27.5 | Assisted living residents with cognitive impairment/Dementia | Randomized control | 12 | 24 | 60–90 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Olsen (2016) [43] | 51 | Experimental 82.9 Control 84.1 |
37.3 | Residents with dementia | Randomized control | 12 | 24 | 30 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Thodberg (2016) [44] | 100 | 85.5 | 31 | Nursing home residents/Dementia | Randomized control | 6 | 12 | 10 | Visit from a therapy dog | Visits from a person bringing a robot seal or soft toy cat |
| Schuck (2015) [45] | 24 | Experimental 7.99 Control 7.81 |
83.3 | Children with ADHD | Randomized control | 12 | 24 | 120–150 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Stefanini (2015) [46] | 34 | 15.9 | 52.9 | Children with mental disorders | Randomized control | 12 | 12 | 45 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Calvo (2016) [47] | 22 | 47.8 | 70.8 | Patients with schizophrenia | Randomized control | 24 | 40 | 60 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Stefanini (2016) [48] | 40 | Experimental 15.2 Control 16.4 |
45 | Children with mental disorders | Randomized control | 12 | 10 | 45 | Dog assisted therapy | Regular therapy |
| Nagengast (1997) [49] | 23 | 4.7 | 39.1 | Children undergoing physical examination | Within-subject, time series design | ⎼ | 2 | 10 | Dog present during physical examination | Physical examination without dog |
| Hansen (1999) [50] | 34 | Experimental 4.1 Control 3.5 |
41.2 | Children undergoing physical examination | Randomized control | ⎼ | 1 | ⎼ | Dog present during physical examination | Physical examination without dog |
| Havener (2001) [51] | 40 | 8.36 | 42.5 | Children undergoing dental procedures | Randomized control | ⎼ | 1 | ⎼ | Dog present during dental procedure | Dental procedure without dog |
| Johnson (2008) [52] | 30 | Dog visits 61 Human visits 59 Reading 58 |
30 | Patients undergoing non-palliative radiation therapy | Randomized control | 4 | 12 | 15 | Visit from a therapy dog | Visit without dog or reading sessions |
| Vagnoli (2015) [53] | 50 | Experimental 7.1 Control 7.38 |
48 | Children undergoing venipuncture | Randomized control | ⎼ | 1 | 10–15 | Dog present during venipuncture | Venipuncture without dog |
| Krause-Parello (2016) [54] | 28 | 82.9 | 42.9 | Older adults | Crossover | ⎼ | 2 | 60 | Visit from a therapy dog | Visit without dog |
| Harper (2015) [55] | 72 | Experimental 67 Control 66 |
41.7 | Patients undergone total joint arthroplasty | Randomized control | ⎼ | 3 | 15 | Physical therapy with a therapy dog | Physical therapy |