The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032). This special issue belongs to the section "Healthcare Quality and Patient Safety".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2021) | Viewed by 41824

Special Issue Editor

Faculty of Music, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S2C5, Canada
Interests: music medicine; rhythmic sensory stimulation; music in healthcare; physical and mental response to music and sound vibration; mechanisms of music response; issues in the integration of music into medicine
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The role of music in healthcare has been evident since antiquity, with examples such as King Saul's mental anguish relieved by David's harp playing or the shamanist practices involving music in many societies. In recent modern times, music therapy has developed as a practice strongly focused on psychological, social, and quality of life concerns and seen some acceptance in general healthcare. The past ten years, however, have witnessed a dramatic increase in interest within the medical community for ways music can function more directly in areas such as neurological and physical rehabilitation, analgesia, stress relief, brain stimulation, sleep induction, blood flow enhancement, or spinal alignment. The 2019 initiative in the USA with the National Institutes of Health and the National Endowment for the Arts collaborating to grant some 20 million dollars to research studies focused on music and health shows the importance of this emerging approach to treatment. This Special Issue entitled, "The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare" will feature original research, reviews, short reports, or opinion pieces focused on: (1) the health-related results of cognitive processing of music, including arousal, association, analysis, engagement, distraction, aesthetic enjoyment, etc.; (2) the effects of music activating specific neural circuits or regions; (3) the effects of music/sound as rhythmic pulse on body, blood, bone, or brain as a result of mechanical cellular or electrical neural stimulation; and (4) the clinical efficacy of music as a means of care throughout the life-span including palliative care. Papers may include evidence-based studies, but those focused on the mechanism of music/sound effects are of particular interest.   

Dr. Lee Bartel
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • Music therapy
  • Music medicine
  • Music neuroscience
  • Sensory stimulation

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Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

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9 pages, 1000 KiB  
Article
Effects of Patient-Selected Music Listening on the Pain and Anxiety of Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis: A Randomized Controlled Trial
by SukKyong Kim and HyeonCheol Jeong
Healthcare 2021, 9(11), 1437; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare9111437 - 25 Oct 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1859
Abstract
This study aimed to analyze the influence of patient-selected music listening on the pain and anxiety levels of hemodialysis patients after undergoing a vascular access operation. Methods: Sixty five patients were randomly assigned to the experimental group (n = 32) or the [...] Read more.
This study aimed to analyze the influence of patient-selected music listening on the pain and anxiety levels of hemodialysis patients after undergoing a vascular access operation. Methods: Sixty five patients were randomly assigned to the experimental group (n = 32) or the control group (n = 33). The experimental group was instructed to listen to their favorite music using headphones during their operations at the center. The control group underwent the operations without listening to any music. The pain measurement during vascular access operation was measured by subjective pain and objective pain behavior; anxiety was measured by subjective anxiety and anxiety states. Results: The experimental group reported significantly lower subjective pain levels than the control group (t = 9.36, p = 0.003). Regarding objective pain behaviors, the experimental group had a significantly lower score than the control group (t = 4.59, p = 0.036). The experimental group had significantly lowered subjective anxiety compared to the control group (F = 10.10, p = 0.002). Regarding anxiety states, the experimental group had significantly lower scores than the control group (F = 23.34, p < 0.001). Conclusion: The results suggest that patient-selected music listening reduced hemodialysis patients’ pain and anxiety levels during vascular access operations. Therefore, music medicine can be included as a new clinical intervention. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
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15 pages, 393 KiB  
Article
Music Connects Us: Development of a Music-Based Group Activity Intervention to Engage People Living with Dementia and Address Loneliness
by Hannah M. O’Rourke, Tammy Hopper, Lee Bartel, Mandy Archibald, Matthias Hoben, Jennifer Swindle, Danielle Thibault and Tynisha Whynot
Healthcare 2021, 9(5), 570; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare9050570 - 12 May 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3005
Abstract
There is a need for intervention research to understand how music-based group activities foster engagement in social interactions and relationship-building among care home residents living with moderate to severe dementia. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to describe the design of ‘Music [...] Read more.
There is a need for intervention research to understand how music-based group activities foster engagement in social interactions and relationship-building among care home residents living with moderate to severe dementia. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to describe the design of ‘Music Connects Us’, a music-based group activity intervention. Music Connects Us primarily aims to promote social connectedness and quality of life among care home residents living with moderate to severe dementia through engagement in music-making, supporting positive social interactions to develop intimate connections with others. To develop Music Connects Us, we adapted the ‘Music for Life’ program offered by Wigmore Hall in the United Kingdom, applying an intervention mapping framework and principles of engaged scholarship. This paper describes in detail the Music Connects Us program, our adaptation approach, and key adaptations made, which included: framing the project to focus on the engagement of the person living with dementia to ameliorate loneliness; inclusion of student and other community-based musicians; reduced requirements for care staff participation; and the development of a detailed musician training approach to prepare musicians to deliver the program in Canada. Description of the development, features, and rationale for Music Connects Us will support its replication in future research aimed to tests its effects and its use in clinical practice. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
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21 pages, 597 KiB  
Article
The Expanding Scope, Inclusivity, and Integration of Music in Healthcare: Recent Developments, Research Illustration, and Future Direction
by Bev Foster, Sarah Pearson, Aimee Berends and Chelsea Mackinnon
Healthcare 2021, 9(1), 99; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare9010099 - 19 Jan 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5536
Abstract
This paper is in three sections. Section One presents a historical overview of international initiatives that have expanded the role of music in healthcare, from the initial formalization of music therapy to its more research-based rehabilitation focus to recent decades that have seen [...] Read more.
This paper is in three sections. Section One presents a historical overview of international initiatives that have expanded the role of music in healthcare, from the initial formalization of music therapy to its more research-based rehabilitation focus to recent decades that have seen an increasing role for professional and community musicians, paraprofessional music services, music-oriented service organizations, and a very large increase in medical funding for music effects. “Music Care” is a particular and comprehensive concept promoted by the Room 217 Foundation in Canada, featuring an inclusive and integrated approach to optimizing the use of music in healthcare settings. It is part of an expanding landscape of global practices and policies where music is used to address specific issues of care. Section Two is provided as an illustration of the growing scope of the concept of using music in healthcare. It reports on a multi-year project that engaged 24 long-term care homes in conducting individualized action research projects using the fundamental approach of “Music Care”, empowering all caregivers, formal and informal, musicians and non-musicians, to use music to improve quality of life and care. Section Two presents only high-level results of the study focused on using music care to reduce resident isolation and loneliness. Section Three draws on the results from the study reported in Section Two to inform the potential and path to the future of music optimization in any healthcare setting. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
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11 pages, 196 KiB  
Article
Exit Music: The Experience of Music Therapy within Medical Assistance in Dying
by SarahRose Black, Lee Bartel and Gary Rodin
Healthcare 2020, 8(3), 331; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare8030331 - 10 Sep 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3390
Abstract
Since the 2015 Canadian legalization of medical assistance in dying (MAiD), many Canadian music therapists have become involved in the care of those requesting this procedure. This qualitative study, the first of its kind, examines the experience of music therapy within MAiD, exploring [...] Read more.
Since the 2015 Canadian legalization of medical assistance in dying (MAiD), many Canadian music therapists have become involved in the care of those requesting this procedure. This qualitative study, the first of its kind, examines the experience of music therapy within MAiD, exploring lived experience from three perspectives: the patient, their primary caregiver, and the music therapist/researcher. Overall thematic findings of a hermeneutic phenomenological analysis of ten MAiD cases demonstrate therapeutically beneficial outcomes in terms of quality of life, symptom management, and life review. Further research is merited to continue an exploration of the role of music therapy in the context of assisted dying. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
17 pages, 245 KiB  
Article
The Use of Therapeutic Music Training to Remediate Cognitive Impairment Following an Acquired Brain Injury: The Theoretical Basis and a Case Study
by Cheryl Jones
Healthcare 2020, 8(3), 327; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare8030327 - 08 Sep 2020
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3226
Abstract
Cognitive impairment is the most common sequelae following an acquired brain injury (ABI) and can have profound impact on the life and rehabilitation potential for the individual. The literature demonstrates that music training results in a musician’s increased cognitive control, attention, and executive [...] Read more.
Cognitive impairment is the most common sequelae following an acquired brain injury (ABI) and can have profound impact on the life and rehabilitation potential for the individual. The literature demonstrates that music training results in a musician’s increased cognitive control, attention, and executive functioning when compared to non-musicians. Therapeutic Music Training (TMT) is a music therapy model which uses the learning to play an instrument, specifically the piano, to engage and place demands on cognitive networks in order to remediate and improve these processes following an acquired brain injury. The underlying theory for the efficacy of TMT as a cognitive rehabilitation intervention is grounded in the literature of cognition, neuroplasticity, and of the increased attention and cognitive control of musicians. This single-subject case study is an investigation into the potential cognitive benefit of TMT and can be used to inform a future more rigorous study. The participant was an adult male diagnosed with cognitive impairment as a result of a severe brain injury following an automobile accident. Pre- and post-tests used standardized neuropsychological measures of attention: Trail Making A and B, Digit Symbol, and the Brown– Peterson Task. The treatment period was twelve months. The results of Trail Making Test reveal improved attention with a large decrease in test time on both Trail Making A (−26.88 s) and Trail Making B (−20.33 s) when compared to normative data on Trail Making A (−0.96 s) and Trail Making B (−3.86 s). Digit Symbol results did not reveal any gains and indicated a reduction (−2) in free recall of symbols. The results of the Brown–Peterson Task reveal improved attention with large increases in the correct number of responses in the 18-s delay (+6) and the 36-s delay (+7) when compared with normative data for the 18-s delay (+0.44) and the 36-s delay (−0.1). There is sparse literature regarding music based cognitive rehabilitation and a gap in the literature between experimental research and clinical work. The purpose of this paper is to present the theory for Therapeutic Music Training (TMT) and to provide a pilot case study investigating the potential efficacy of TMT to remediate cognitive impairment following an ABI. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
13 pages, 2328 KiB  
Article
The Effects of Long-Term 40-Hz Physioacoustic Vibrations on Motor Impairments in Parkinson’s Disease: A Double-Blinded Randomized Control Trial
by Abdullah Mosabbir, Quincy J. Almeida and Heidi Ahonen
Healthcare 2020, 8(2), 113; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare8020113 - 28 Apr 2020
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 5571
Abstract
Recent studies have suggested that vibration therapy may have a positive influence in treating motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, quantitative evidence of the benefits of vibration utilized inconsistent methods of vibration delivery, and to date there have been no studies showing [...] Read more.
Recent studies have suggested that vibration therapy may have a positive influence in treating motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, quantitative evidence of the benefits of vibration utilized inconsistent methods of vibration delivery, and to date there have been no studies showing a long-term benefit of 40 Hz vibration in the PD population. The objective of this study was to demonstrate the efficacy of vibration administered via a physioacoustic therapy method (PAT) on motor symptoms of PD over a longer term, completed as a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Overall motor symptom severity measured by the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale III showed significant improvements in the treatment group over 12 weeks. Specifically, all aspects of PD, including tremor, rigidity, bradykinesia, and posture and gait measures improved. To our knowledge, this is the first study to quantitatively assess 40-Hz vibration applied using the PAT method for potential long-term therapeutic effects on motor symptoms of PD. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
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Review

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35 pages, 380 KiB  
Review
Possible Mechanisms for the Effects of Sound Vibration on Human Health
by Lee Bartel and Abdullah Mosabbir
Healthcare 2021, 9(5), 597; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare9050597 - 18 May 2021
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 11763
Abstract
This paper presents a narrative review of research literature to “map the landscape” of the mechanisms of the effect of sound vibration on humans including the physiological, neurological, and biochemical. It begins by narrowing music to sound and sound to vibration. The focus [...] Read more.
This paper presents a narrative review of research literature to “map the landscape” of the mechanisms of the effect of sound vibration on humans including the physiological, neurological, and biochemical. It begins by narrowing music to sound and sound to vibration. The focus is on low frequency sound (up to 250 Hz) including infrasound (1–16 Hz). Types of application are described and include whole body vibration, vibroacoustics, and focal applications of vibration. Literature on mechanisms of response to vibration is categorized into hemodynamic, neurological, and musculoskeletal. Basic mechanisms of hemodynamic effects including stimulation of endothelial cells and vibropercussion; of neurological effects including protein kinases activation, nerve stimulation with a specific look at vibratory analgesia, and oscillatory coherence; of musculoskeletal effects including muscle stretch reflex, bone cell progenitor fate, vibration effects on bone ossification and resorption, and anabolic effects on spine and intervertebral discs. In every category research on clinical applications are described. The conclusion points to the complexity of the field of vibrational medicine and calls for specific comparative research on type of vibration delivery, amount of body or surface being stimulated, effect of specific frequencies and intensities to specific mechanisms, and to greater interdisciplinary cooperation and focus. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
14 pages, 1882 KiB  
Review
Re-Sounding Alarms: Designing Ergonomic Auditory Interfaces by Embracing Musical Insights
by Liam Foley, Cameron J. Anderson and Michael Schutz
Healthcare 2020, 8(4), 389; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/healthcare8040389 - 08 Oct 2020
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5859
Abstract
Auditory alarms are an important component of human–computer interfaces, used in mission-critical industries such as aviation, nuclear power plants, and hospital settings. Unfortunately, problems with recognition, detection, and annoyance continue to hamper their effectiveness. Historically, they appear designed more in response to engineering [...] Read more.
Auditory alarms are an important component of human–computer interfaces, used in mission-critical industries such as aviation, nuclear power plants, and hospital settings. Unfortunately, problems with recognition, detection, and annoyance continue to hamper their effectiveness. Historically, they appear designed more in response to engineering constraints than principles of hearing science. Here we argue that auditory perception in general and music perception in particular hold valuable lessons for alarm designers. We also discuss ongoing research suggesting that the temporal complexity of musical tones offers promising insight into new ways of addressing widely recognized shortcomings of current alarms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Expanding Scope of Music in Healthcare)
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