Changes In Cortisol Levels After Application Of Laughter Therapy In Adults Hospitalized With Diagnosis From Cerebrovascular Disease

Several studies relate cortisol to stress levels, which can be increased in a hospital setting. Laughter therapy may tend to decrease the levels of serum cortisol in hospitalized patients. The objective of this work was to quantify the impact of laughter therapy on cortisol levels in hospitalized adults diagnosed with unspecified cerebrovascular diseases according to (ICD-10- I6-79). An exploratory study with quasi-experimental design was performed in 32 hospitalized patients, older than 54 years, by comparing their initial and final serum cortisol levels after they received laughter therapy from 10 to 15 minutes. Two hospital clowns performed this therapy. It was found that 62.5% of the adults lowered cortisol levels, but without reaching significant differences. When deepening the analysis, significant differences were found in those under 76 years (p<0.05), in those who reported doing moderate physical activities routinely before hospitalization (p<0.05) and in those with diabetes comorbidity (p<0.05). The findings are consistent with the possible clinical benefits of the use of laughter therapy to reduce cortisol levels in hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of cerebrovascular disease. It is suggested to conduct further studies with a larger sample size and with an experimental design, to corroborate the findings in this work.