Therapy with animals (true and robotic)

In 2013, one of the most prestigious scientific journals in the world, The Lancet, published a study entitled Delphins, dogs and robot seals for the treatment of neurological diseases. One of the most striking things about the work is to include in the same statement real animals –whose therapeutic benefits have been studied and tested for different diseases over the last decades– and robots with animal appearance.

Its promoter is the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), in Japan, which years ago decided to bet firmly on a robotic company for the elderly.

PARO is a robotic companion with the appearance of a seal. At first glance, it might seem like a simple stuffed animal, but PARO (its name all over the world except in Spain, where it is called NUKA) is much more than that. The aforementioned work, in fact, endorsed the therapeutic benefits of this robot seal, which weighs 2.9 kilos and costs around 6,000 euros.

Its creators define it as a therapeutic robot in the neurological field and the fact is that many data support it. In 2009, the agency that regulates drugs and food in the US, the FDA, approved it as a non-pharmacological medical treatment and since then its creators have been trying to get more government agencies to do the same.

PARO has been tested to help people with dementia, cancer, and children admitted or with autism.

According to its creator,  Takanori Shibata, an ftf expert, there is evidence that the number of caregivers will need to double with increasing longevity. Although PARO would not replace his figure, if it would help in the early stages of care for the elderly or facilitate the work of caregivers or nursing home staff. The robot has been shown to reduce discomfort in dementia patients and even decrease the need for psychotropic drugs in these patie

To increase its presence in the market – only about 5,000 units have been sold, more than half in Japan, Shibata believes that the volume of clinical evidence must be increased to allow government agencies to consider financing them in public health systems.

PARO is not the only therapeutic robot-animal. In 2016, the toy company Hasbro launched its line Joy for all, robotic animals – three cat formats and a dog puppy – which, however, serve only to keep company.

Although their therapeutic benefit is not proven,  some nursing homes have already acquired them and their residents seem to be delighted with the idea.

The case of AIBO, the robot dog of Sony pioneer in animal robotics,  After being announced its commercialization with great fanfare and even starring in a scientific study in which its effectiveness in the elderly was compared with that of real dogs, the doggy android suffered a forced retirement in 2006. Interestingly, the year 2016 Sony announced its relaunch and since 2018 it is available as Sony Aibo ERS-1000. One more sign of the change of times?