Quantifying the Efficacy and Role of Service Dogs for Military Veterans With PTSD

University of Arizona

Status: Completed

Conditions: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Treatments: Behavioral: Service Dog

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT03245814

1R21HD091896-01

R21HD091896-01 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this study is to quantify the therapeutic efficacy and role of trained service dogs on socio-emotional functioning among military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Full description

The long-term research goal is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of service dogs as a complementary intervention to enhance biopsychosocial functioning in special populations. The objective is to conduct a methodologically rigorous trial to quantify the therapeutic efficacy of service dogs on clinically-important outcomes for veterans with PTSD. Based on preliminary findings and qualitative reports, the central hypothesis is that military veterans with PTSD who are provided service dogs will experience reduced PTSD symptoms related to socio-emotional functioning and arousal modulation. The rationale for this research is that its successful completion will provide an evidence-based demonstration of the efficacy and role of an increasingly used yet poorly tested complementary intervention. The completion of this project is expected to established an initial demonstration of the therapeutic efficacy of service dogs in this population, as well as possible mechanisms of action via specific biological pathways and human-canine interaction profiles.

Enrollment: 170 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria for veterans into the study will include:

• Applied for and approved to receive a dog from K9s For Warriors
• Military service on or after September 11, 2001
• Honorable discharge or current honorable service
• Diagnosis of PTSD
• No conviction of any crimes against animals.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: Non-Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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170 participants in 2 patient groups

Service Dog

Experimental group

Description:

Participants in the service dog arm will receive unrestricted, non-study usual care, in addition to a trained service dog.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Service Dog

Waitlist Control

No Intervention group

Description:

Participants in the control arm will receive unrestricted, non-study usual care, while on the waitlist for a service dog.