Effects of puppet therapy on palmar sweating of hospitalized children

Abstract

The study investigated effects of a puppet presentation on anxiety levels of hospitalized children as measured by the Palmar Sweat Index (PSI); Subjects were 43 children, ages 5-8 years inclusive, allocated randomly to treatment and nontreatment groups. Treatment consisted of a puppet show designed to familiarize patients with hospital routines and with procedures of their operations. Four PSI measures were collected from each subject, and average difference scores of individuals among all measures were compared. Analyses of variance were used to test mean differences with data categorized by treatment, by sex, and by interaction of sex and treatment, The treatment was associated with a significant reduction in anxiety from the time of admission to both (1) the period immediately after the puppet show, and (2) the evening after surgery. In the interim, the measure of anxiety returned to near the level at admission.