Music therapy for in-patients with schizophrenia: exploratory randomised controlled trial. The additional therapeutic effect of group music therapy for schizophrenic patients: a randomized study. The impact of music therapy on language functioning in dementia. Efficacy of music therapy in the treatment of behavioral and psychiatric symptoms of dementia. Effect of music therapy on anxiety and depression in patients with Alzheimer's type dementia: randomised, controlled study. Benefits of music therapy as an adjunct to chest physiotherapy in infants and toddlers with cystic fibrosis. Music therapy in moderate and severe dementia of Alzheimer's type: a case-control study. Use of preferred music to reduce emotional distress and symptom activity during radiation therapy. [The effect of music therapy on anxiety level in hospitalized asthmatic patients].
Music therapy may provide a means of improving mental health among people with schizophrenia, but its effects in acute psychoses have not been explored.
                To examine the feasibility of a randomised trial of music therapy for inpatients with schizophrenia, and explore its effects on mental health.
                Up to 12 weeks of individual music therapy plus standard care were compared with standard care alone. Masked assessments of mental health, global functioning and satisfaction with care were conducted at 3 months.
                Of 115 eligible patients 81 (70%) were randomised. Two-thirds of those randomised to music therapy attended at least four sessions (median attendance, eight sessions). Multivariate analysis demonstrated a trend towards improved symptom scores among those randomised to music therapy, especially in general symptoms of schizophrenia.
                A randomised trial of music therapy for in-patients with schizophrenia is feasible. The effects and cost-effectiveness of music therapy for acute psychosis should be further explored in an explanatory randomised trial. Schizophrenia is one of the most serious mental disorders. Music therapy has only recently been introduced as a form of treatment. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of music therapy for schizophrenic in-patients needing acute care.
                Thirty-seven patients with psychotic disorders were randomly assigned to an experimental group and a control group. Both groups received medication and treatment indicated for their disorder. Additionally, the experimental group (n = 21) underwent group music therapy.
                Significant effects of music therapy are found in patients' self-evaluation of their psychosocial orientation and for negative symptoms. No differences were found in the quality of life.
                Musical activity diminishes negative symptoms and improves interpersonal contact. These positive effects of music therapy could increase the patient's abilities to adapt to the social environment in the community after discharge from the hospital. Dementias, such as Alzheimer's disease, include a progressive deterioration of language functioning. While some researchers have reported an increase in patients' self-expression following music therapy, it is not clear whether these changes specifically reflect improved language skills or whether simple interpersonal interaction with a therapist could account for the improvement. In this study, the effects of music therapy were compared to conversational sessions on language functioning in dementia patients. Participants were selected according to the following criteria: (a) residing in a facility specializing in Alzheimer's and related disorders; (b) possessing sufficient verbal ability to answer simple questions and to comply with requests to speak, participate, or sit down; and (c) attaining the written consent of the patient's guardian or representative. All participants had been in music therapy twice per week for at least 3 months prior to the study onset. One week prior to the beginning of the study, subjects were assessed for cognitive functioning using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and language ability via the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB). A within-subjects design was used, with order of condition (music or group conversation first) counter-balanced between participants. Subjects participated in groups of 2 to 4, twice per week for 20-30 minutes for a total of 8 sessions (4 music therapy and 4 conversation sessions or vice-versa), and were re-tested on the WAB at the end of each 2 week (4 session) interval. Results from 20 participants revealed that music therapy significantly improved performance on both speech content and fluency dimensions of the spontaneous speech subscale of the WAB (p =.01). While the difference in overall Aphasia Quotient (AQ) for music and conversation sessions (mean AQ = 76 vs. 70, respectively) did not reach statistical significance, data were only available for 10 participants (5 per condition). Hopefully, these findings will stimulate additional research on the use of music therapy interventions with demented patients, as it may offer a noninvasive mechanism to enhance communication between victims and their caregivers. Music therapy (MT) has been proposed as valid approach for behavioral and psychologic symptoms (BPSD) of dementia. However, studies demonstrating the effectiveness of this approach are lacking.
                To assess MT effectiveness in reducing BPSD in subjects with dementia.
                Fifty-nine persons with dementia were enrolled in this study. All of them underwent a multidimensional assessment including Mini Mental State Examination, Barthel Index and Neuropsychiatry Inventory at enrollment and after 8, 16, and 20 weeks. Subjects were randomly assigned to experimental (n=30) or control (n=29) group. The MT sessions were evaluated with standardized criteria. The experimental group received 30 MT sessions (16 wk of treatment), whereas the control group received educational support or entertainment activities.
                NPI total score significantly decreased in the experimental group at 8th, 16th, and 20th weeks (interaction time x group: F3,165=5.06, P=0.002). Specific BPSD (ie, delusions, agitation, anxiety, apathy, irritability, aberrant motor activity, and night-time disturbances) significantly improved. The empathetic relationship and the patients' active participation in the MT approach, also improved in the experimental group.
                The study shows that MT is effective to reduce BPSD in patients with moderate-severe dementia. Numerous studies have indicated the value of music therapy in the management of patients with Alzheimer's disease. A recent pilot study demonstrated the feasibility and usefulness of a new music therapy technique. The aim of this controlled, randomised study was to assess the effects of this new music therapy technique on anxiety and depression in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer-type dementia.
                This was a single-centre, comparative, controlled, randomised study, with blinded assessment of its results. The duration of follow-up was 24 weeks. The treated group (n = 15) participated in weekly sessions of individual, receptive music therapy. The musical style of the session was chosen by the patient. The validated 'U' technique was employed. The control group (n = 15) participated under the same conditions in reading sessions. The principal endpoint, measured at weeks 1, 4, 8, 16 and 24, was the level of anxiety (Hamilton Scale). Changes in the depression score (Geriatric Depression Scale) were also analyzed as a secondary endpoint.
                Significant improvements in anxiety (p < 0.01) and depression (p < 0.01) were observed in the music therapy group as from week 4 and until week 16. The effect of music therapy was sustained for up to 8 weeks after the discontinuation of sessions between weeks 16 and 24 (p < 0.01).
                These results confirm the valuable effect of music therapy on anxiety and depression in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease. This new music therapy technique is simple to implement and can easily be integrated in a multidisciplinary programme for the management of Alzheimer's disease.
                Copyright 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel. Routine chest physiotherapy (CPT) is an important component of prophylactic therapy in children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and requires a significant commitment of time and energy. It is important, therefore, to establish CPT as a positive experience. In this study, we evaluated the effect of recorded music as an adjunct to CPT. Specifically, we compared the use of newly composed music, familiar music, and the family's usual routine on children's and parents' enjoyment of CPT and the parents' perception of time taken to complete CPT. Enjoyment and perception of time were evaluated via questionnaires designed specifically for this study. Participants were caregivers of one or more children with CF who were aged between 4(1/2) months and 24 months at the commencement of the clinical trial and required CPT on a daily basis. Participants were randomly allocated into control and treatment groups. Control group participants experienced two conditions consecutively: no audiotape (NT; control) and familiar music tape (FT; placebo control). Treatment group participants were given the treatment music tape (TT), which was composed and compiled by a music therapist. After baseline assessment, evaluation occurred at two 6-weekly intervals. Children's enjoyment increased significantly after use of the TT (+1. 25 units) compared to NT (-0.5 units; P = 0.03), as did parents' enjoyment (+1.0 vs. 0.0 units, P = 0.02). Children's enjoyment did not change significantly after use of the FT (+0.75 units) compared to NT (n.s.). Likewise, parents' enjoyment did not change significantly after use of the FT (+1.0 units, n.s.). There was no change in perception of time after use of the TT (-4.5 vs. +0.2 min, n.s.) or the FT (+3.3 min, n.s.). These results indicate that children's and parents' enjoyment of CPT significantly increased after the use of specifically composed and recorded music as an adjunct. We therefore recommend that recorded music, such as that provided in this study, be given to parents to use as an adjunct to CPT when their young children are diagnosed with CF, in order to assist the establishment of a positive routine.
                Copyright 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Music therapy is a potential non-pharmacological treatment for the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, but although some studies have found it to be helpful, most are small and uncontrolled.
                This case-control study was carried out by qualified music therapists in two nursing homes and two psychogeriatric wards. The participants were 38 patients with moderate or severe Alzheimer's disease (AD) assigned randomly to a music therapy group and a control group.
                The study showed a significant reduction in activity disturbances in the music therapy group during a 6-week period measured with the Behavior Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease Rating Scale (BEHAVE-AD). There was also a significant reduction in the sum of scores of activity disturbances, aggressiveness and anxiety. Other symptoms rated by subscales of the BEHAVE-AD did not decrease significantly. Four weeks later the effects had mostly disappeared.
                Music therapy is a safe and effective method for treating agitation and anxiety in moderately severe and severe AD. This is in line with the results of some non-controlled studies on music therapy in dementia. Music therapy has decreased anxiety levels in many medical settings. This randomized clinical trial examined the effectiveness of a music listening intervention, delivered by a board-certified music therapist, in patients undergoing curative radiation therapy (RT). Emotional distress (anxiety, depression, and treatment-related distress) and symptoms (fatigue and pain) were measured at baseline, mid-treatment, and end of treatment in 63 patients undergoing RT. Although patients who listened to self-selected music reported lower anxiety and treatment-related distress, there was a decline in these outcomes for patients in both groups over the course of RT. Depression, fatigue, and pain were not appreciably affected by music therapy. Within the music group, there was a significant correlation between number of times music was used/week and the change in treatment-related distress, suggesting that higher doses of music produced greater declines in distress. While these findings provided some support for the use of music in reducing distress during RT, further research demonstrating clear differences between intervention and control conditions is needed. Physical symptoms were not affected by the use of music over the course of RT. The role of music therapy as a supportive treatment is not well defined. The music therapy cannot be estimated as the isolated method it is often only the part of the complex therapy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of music therapy on anxiety level in hospitalized asthmatic patients. The patient group was consisted of 36 patients with bronchial asthma (23 women and 13 men). In all patients we evaluated the level of anxiety (attribute and state) according to Spielberger and intensity of dyspnoe according to Borg scale at the first day of examination and after 10 days of rehabilitation program. Moreover we performed spirometry. The respiratory rehabilitation program included: exercise of breath control, correction of respiratory pattern, training of diaphragm and additional respiratory muscles. The duration of music therapy lasted 15 min. After 10 days rehabilitation with or without music therapy we found the reduction of anxiety (state) (p<0.0001). However we did not observe the difference between two studied groups with or without music therapy in diminishing of anxiety (p = 0.55). In conclusion, we believe that the music therapy can play important role in treatment of somatic disease but our study did not confirm its additive positive meaning in patients with bronchial asthma.
Music therapy as an addition to standard care helps people with schizophrenia to improve their global state, mental state (including negative symptoms) and social functioning if a sufficient number of music therapy sessions are provided by qualified music therapists. Further research should especially address the long-term effects of music therapy, dose-response relationships, as well as the relevance of outcomes measures in relation to music therapy.