ANIMAL-ASSISTED THERAPY IN PATIENTS WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER: A LITERATURE REVIEW

Abstract

Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) is a therapeutic resource utilized by healthcare professionals that leverages the human-animal relationship to promote health and cognitive development in patients. The aim of this review was to understand the benefits of AAT as a therapeutic tool in the rehabilitation of patients with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and its main contributions. A search for previous works was conducted on the PubMed and BVS platforms, and a total of 17 scientific articles were included after applying inclusion and exclusion criteria. Through the analyzed studies, it was observed that AAT is capable of promoting the enhancement of cognitive, physical, and emotional aspects in autistic patients. The results found in this review suggest that AAT plays an important role in the neurodevelopment of people with cognitive deficits and constitutes an effective non-pharmacological therapeutic strategy in the treatment of autism.