Effects of Animal-assisted Activities on Biobehavioral Stress Responses in Hospitalized Children: A Randomized Controlled Study.

Purpose: This study assessed the effectiveness of animal-assisted activities (AAA) on biobehavioral stress responses (anxiety, positive and negative affect, and salivary cortisol and C-reactive protein [CRP] levels) in hospitalized children.

Design And Methods: This was a randomized, controlled study.

Method: Forty-eight participants were randomly assigned to receive a 10-minute AAA (n=24) or a control condition (n=24).