Therapeutic Impact of Snoezelen Environments on Emotional Outcomes and Pain in Long-Term Care Residents with and Without Dementia.

Authors

Regina Vila-Badia, Teia Anglada-Dilmé, Geòrgia Coderch-Clavaguera, Cristina Capdevila-Crusellas, Tura Freixa-Canal, Laura Costa-Vilarrasa, Anna Tubert-Maune, Ma Àngels Navarro-Garcia, Mercè Pratsevall-Roca, Marina Sales-Mesquida, Marta Planas Sabate, Cristina Espelt-Sallent, Mapi Martín-Martinez, Laia Briones-Buixassa

Published in

Clinical gerontologist. Pages 1-13. Oct 04, 2026. Epub Oct 04, 2026.

Abstract

Older adults living in long-term care facilities are at increased risk of reduced psychoemotional well-being. Snoezelen multisensory environments have been proposed as person-centered interventions, although evidence remains inconsistent. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of Snoezelen environments on biopsychosocial outcomes in older adults living in long-term care facilities with and without dementia.
A mixed-methods, quasi-experimental repeated-measures design was applied. Participants completed eight sessions over four weeks with a self-controlled comparison phase. Quantitative analyses examined pre-post intervention and pre-post session effects in physiological measures, pain perception, psychoemotional domains, functional status and quality-of-life outcomes. Data from focus groups with participants and professionals were analyzed thematically.
Session-level analyses revealed improvements in emotional expression, psychoemotional outcomes, and pain perception following sessions. Qualitative findings supported these results. No pre-post intervention effects were observed.
Snoezelen multisensory environments provide immediate psychoemotional benefits and pain reduction in older adults living in long-term care facilities with and without dementia.
When implemented on demand or preventively, Snoezelen multisensory environments may serve as complementary, person-centered interventions in long-term care settings.

PMID:
42829808
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 04 Oct 2026.

Read full publication at:
Please sign in to see all details.

Stats

1-terrible, 9-excellent. How would you rate this publication? Sign in in to submit your rating.

Post a comment

You need to be signed in to post comments. You can sign in here.

Comments

There are no comments yet.