Service Dogs for Veterans and Military Members With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Nonrandomized Controlled Trial.

Importance: Military members and veterans (hereafter, veterans) with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) increasingly seek psychiatric service dogs as a complementary intervention, yet the effectiveness of service dogs is understudied.

Objective: To estimate the associations between psychiatric service dog partnership and self-reported and clinician-rated PTSD symptom severity, depression, anxiety, and psychosocial functioning after 3 months of intervention among veterans.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This nonrandomized controlled trial used standardized and validated assessment instruments completed by participants and administered by blinded clinicians.

Animal-assisted interventions for military families: a systematic review.

Introduction: The incorporation of animals into interventions focused on military families is a relatively new concept. Though animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) have been studied in the context of military veterans, few studies incorporate members of the military family or focus on the family members' experiences.

Methods: This systematic review investigates the effects of AAIs on the wellbeing of military family members beyond the veteran themselves through three aims: (1) by describing the characteristics of AAIs for military family members, (2) by evaluating the quality of the methodology present within the current literature, and (3) by identifying key concepts and knowledge gaps within the findings reported to date.

A Preliminary Analysis of Psychiatric Service Dog Placements and Sleep Patterns of Partners of Veterans With PTSD.

Partners of veterans diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are at risk of a variety of challenges, and it is unknown whether psychiatric service dogs are disruptive to their sleep or provide similar benefits that are seen in the limited literature on veterans. As part of a larger clinical trial examining the efficacy of psychiatric service dogs for veterans with PTSD and their families, this study focused on sleep patterns of veterans' partners ( = 88), incorporating both subjective (clinically validated self-report surveys) and objective sleep measures (actigraphy). Linear regression was used to analyze differences in relation to group (intervention versus control) at follow up, controlling for baseline score.

Service dogs for autistic children and family system functioning: a constant comparative analysis.

Introduction: Service dog placements for autistic children are growing in popularity, yet findings to date are mixed. Moreover, no study to date has examined these placements through the lens of a recognized theoretical model. The purpose of this study is twofold: to explore experiences reported by caretakers of autistic children involved in a service dog program, and to contextualize findings within an established theoretical framework.

Psychiatric service dog placements are associated with better daily psychosocial functioning for military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder.

Objective: Psychiatric service dog placements may benefit psychosocial functioning for veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), however, these effects have never been examined directly in daily life. This nonrandomized longitudinal clinical trial quantified the efficacy of psychiatric service dogs for daily psychosocial functioning among = 168 veterans with PTSD using ecological momentary assessment (EMA).

Method: EMA data were collected twice daily for 2 weeks at each assessment period (0 and 3 months), totaling 9,408 survey responses (2 Assessments × 14 Days × 2 Prompts × 168 Participants).

Survey of international academic centers and institutes focused on human-animal bond: Scope and landscape in 2021.

Routine surveying of academic centers focused on the human-animal bond is critical to understand the trajectory of the field and to create an environment where centers can learn from one another and build collaborations. The purpose of this manuscript was to report the findings of a survey of these human-animal bond centers, to summarize the status of the field, and to identify changes within the field since 2016. Survey questions concentrated on the demographic characteristics, engagement programs, educational opportunities, and research focuses of the centers.

Assistance dogs for military veterans with PTSD: A systematic review, meta-analysis, and meta-synthesis.

Psychiatric assistance dogs for military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) currently make up over 19% of assistance dog partnerships globally. We conducted a systematic review of the literature relating to these partnerships, with specific aims to (1) summarize their characteristics, (2) evaluate the quality of existing evidence, and (3) summarize outcomes. A total of 432 records were independently screened (Cohen's kappa = 0.

Genome sequencing in congenital cataracts improves diagnostic yield.

Congenital cataracts are one of the major causes of childhood-onset blindness around the world. Genetic diagnosis provides benefits through avoidance of unnecessary tests, surveillance of extraocular features, and genetic family information. In this study, we demonstrate the value of genome sequencing in improving diagnostic yield in congenital cataract patients and families.

Inhibition of UV-induced uric acid production using allopurinol prevents suppression of the contact hypersensitivity response.

Exposure to solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation suppresses adaptive immune responses. This contributes to skin carcinogenesis but may protect from some autoimmune diseases. However, the molecular changes occurring within UV-exposed skin that precipitate the downstream events leading to immune suppression are not fully understood.

The immune-modulating cytokine and endogenous Alarmin interleukin-33 is upregulated in skin exposed to inflammatory UVB radiation.

The cellular and molecular mechanisms by which UV radiation modulates inflammation and immunity while simultaneously maintaining skin homeostasis is complex and not completely understood. Similar to the effects of UV, IL-33 has potent immune-modulating properties that are mediated by the downstream induction of cytokines and chemokines. We have discovered that exposure of mice in vivo or human skin samples ex vivo to inflammatory doses of UVB induced IL-33 expression within the epidermal and dermal skin layers.