Animal-Assisted Therapy Combined With Standard Rehabilitation for Motor Recovery in Dementia Patients in a Medical and Rehabilitation Care Unit

Starting soon · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Dementia, Cognitive Dysfunction ( MMSE < 24 ), Motor Skills Disorders

In brief

The goal of this randomized study is to find out if animal-assisted therapy (AAT) - a structured program where trained animals take part in care sessions guided by health professionals - can help improve movement abilities in older adults with dementia or memory-related conditions who are staying in a medical rehabilitation unit. The main questions this study aims to answer are: * Can adding animal-assisted therapy to standard rehabilitation improve participants' movement and motor abilities better than standard rehabilitation alone? * Can this combined approach help participants stay more independent in daily activities? * Can this combined approach improve participants' quality of life? * Can this combined approach reduce the risk of falls? Researchers will compare two groups: * Group 1 (experimental): Standard rehabilitation + animal-assisted therapy sessions with a trained dog and/or rabbits * Group 2 (control): Standard rehabilitation alone Both groups attend 2 one-hour rehabilitation sessions per week for 4 weeks. Participants will: * Complete movement and daily-life ability tests at the start and end of the study * Attend 8 rehabilitation sessions (over 4 weeks) * Participants in the animal therapy group will interact with a trained dog and/or rabbits during sessions, guided by a certified nurse-animal therapist, a psychomotor therapist, and a nursing assistant * Be assessed at the end of the 4-week program (Week 6) to measure any changes in motor abilities, independence, quality of life, and fall risk

Key facts

Study ID

NCT07730983

Run by

LNA SANTE

People needed

32

Starts

2026-09-01

Expected to finish

2027-12-01

Last updated by the study team

2026-07-28

Who can join

Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Hospitalized in the geriatric medical and rehabilitation ward (SMR) of Institut Médical de Sologne (IMDS)
• Diagnosed dementia or confirmed cognitive decline, shown by a score between 15 and 24 on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE - a short standardized test of memory and thinking)
• Has active motor rehabilitation goals (identified need to improve movement abilities during hospitalization)
• Participant and/or their legal guardian, trusted person (personne de confiance), curator, or family member has provided written consent to participate in the study
• Affiliated to a French social security scheme

You may not qualify if…

• Known allergy to the animals used in the animal-assisted therapy sessions (dog, rabbits)
• Fear of animals
• History of aggressive behavior toward animals
• Concomitant psychiatric disorders
• Needs only a stimulation and/or skills maintenance approach (no active motor rehabilitation goals)
• Currently enrolled in another interventional research study
• (Note: A participant who was previously enrolled in another interventional study may join RÉMÉDI-A once their participation in the prior study has ended, without a washout period, provided all eligibility criteria are met.)

Where it is running

• Institut Médical de Sologne LNA Santé — Lamotte-Beuvron, France

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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