Dog-assisted therapy helps children with cerebral palsy at Girona hospital

Josep Trueta Hospital in Girona has started offering dog-assisted therapy for children with cerebral palsy who require botox injections.

The goal is to reduce the anxiety the injections may cause in children, easing pain and the need for sedation.

The therapy is being carried out in collaboration with the Barcelona-based Centre for Animal-Assisted Therapies (CTAC), which specializes in providing sessions with dogs for people with disabilities.

The hospital has put in place a hygiene and control protocol for the animals, including regular veterinary check-ups and brushing before entering the treatment area.

Stress reducer

Josep Trueta is the third the Catalan Health Institute's hospitals to incorporate the therapy, following Vall d'Hebron in Barcelona and Germans Trias i Pujol in Badalona.

According to the hospital, dog-assisted therapy is "backed by numerous studies that demonstrate how this support reduces stress and sensitivity to pain in children, while improving their sense of well-being and tolerance to hospital stays and procedures."

At Trueta, the therapy takes place in the Cerebral Palsy Functional Unit, where professionals in neuropediatrics, rehabilitation, and traumatology treat around a hundred children with permanent neuromotor disorders, produced during pregnancy, childbirth, or after birth.

Most children with cerebral palsy experience spasticity, meaning their muscles are rigid and lose elasticity, affecting mobility, sometimes severely.

To counteract this muscle rigidity and tension, botox (botulinum toxin) injections have proven effective.

However, the treatment can be painful since each session involves multiple injections, which causes high levels of anxiety and often requires sedation with pain relief (usually nitrous oxide).

To reduce anxiety during the injections, dog-assisted therapy is offered, providing emotional support to the child.

Three dogs at Trueta perform the role.

Cerebral Palsy Functional Unit

The Cerebral Palsy Functional Unit at Trueta opened in December 2022 with the aim of streamlining care for children and their families, as they can be seen by various specialists in a single visit.

In 2024, the unit treated 64 patients, 50 of whom were aged under 16.