BACKGROUND:

Having cancer may result in extensive emotional, physical and social suffering. Music interventions have been used to alleviate symptoms and treatment side effects in cancer patients.

OBJECTIVES:

To compare the effects of music therapy or music medicine interventions and standard care with standard care alone, or standard care and other interventions in patients with cancer.

SEARCH STRATEGY:

We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library 2010, Issue 10), MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, LILACS, Science Citation Index, CancerLit, www.musictherapyworld.net, CAIRSS, Proquest Digital Dissertations, ClinicalTrials.gov, Current Controlled Trials, and the National Research Register. All databases were searched from their start date to September 2010. We handsearched music therapy journals and reference lists and contacted experts. There was no language restriction.

SELECTION CRITERIA:

We included all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-randomized trials of music interventions for improving psychological and physical outcomes in patients with cancer. Participants undergoing biopsy and aspiration for diagnostic purposes were excluded.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS:

Two review authors independently extracted the data and assessed the risk of bias. Where possible, results were presented in meta analyses using mean differences and standardized mean differences. Post-test scores were used. In cases of significant baseline difference, we used change scores.

MAIN RESULTS:

We included 30 trials with a total of 1891 participants. We included music therapy interventions, offered by trained music therapists, as well as listening to pre-recorded music, offered by medical staff. The results suggest that music interventions may have a beneficial effect on anxiety in people with cancer, with a reported average anxiety reduction of 11.20 units (95% confidence interval (CI) -19.59 to -2.82, P = 0.009) on the STAI-S scale and -0.61 standardized units (95% CI -0.97 to -0.26, P = 0.0007) on other anxiety scales. Results also suggested a positive impact on mood (standardised mean difference (SMD) = 0.42, 95% CI 0.03 to 0.81, P = 0.03), but no support was found for depression.Music interventions may lead to small reductions in heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure. A moderate pain-reducing effect was found (SMD = -0.59, 95% CI -0.92 to -0.27, P = 0.0003), but no strong evidence was found for enhancement of fatigue or physical status. The pooled estimate of two trials suggested a beneficial effect of music therapy on patients’ quality of life (QoL) (SMD = 1.02, 95% CI 0.58 to 1.47, P = 0.00001).No conclusions could be drawn regarding the effect of music interventions on distress, body image, oxygen saturation level, immunologic functioning, spirituality, and communication outcomes.Seventeen trials used listening to pre-recorded music and 13 trials used music therapy interventions that actively engaged the patients. Not all studies included the same outcomes and due to the small number of studies per outcome, we could not compare the effectiveness of music medicine interventions with that of music therapy interventions.

AUTHORS’ CONCLUSIONS:

This systematic review indicates that music interventions may have beneficial effects on anxiety, pain, mood, and QoL in people with cancer. Furthermore, music may have a small effect on heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure. Most trials were at high risk of bias and, therefore, these results need to be interpreted with caution.

Objectives: Agitation in nursing home residents with dementia leads to increase in psychotropic medication, decrease in quality of life, and to patient distress and caregiver burden. Music therapy has previously been found effective in treatment of agitation in dementia care but studies have been methodologically insufficient. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of individual music therapy on agitation in persons with moderate/severe dementia living in nursing homes, and to explore its effect on psychotropic medication and quality of life. Method: In a crossover trial, 42 participants with dementia were randomized to a sequence of six weeks of individual music therapy and six weeks of standard care. Outcome measures included agitation, quality of life and medication. Results: Agitation disruptiveness increased during standard care and decreased during music therapy. The difference at -6.77 (95% CI (confidence interval): -12.71, -0.83) was significant (p = 0.027), with a medium effect size (0.50). The prescription of psychotropic medication increased significantly more often during standard care than during music therapy (p = 0.02). Conclusion: This study shows that six weeks of music therapy reduces agitation disruptiveness and prevents medication increases in people with dementia. The positive trends in relation to agitation frequency and quality of life call for further research with a larger sample.

Acute ischemic stroke is a neurological emergency that can be treated with time-sensitive interventions, including intravenous thrombolysis and endovascular approaches. Extensive study has demonstrated that rapid assessment and treatment are essential to improving neurological outcome. For this reason, acute ischemic stroke was chosen as an Emergency Neurological Life Support protocol. The protocol focuses on the first hour following the onset of neurological deficit.

Object

The rates and risk factors for external ventricular drain (EVD) placement and long-term shunt dependence in patients with ruptured arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) have not been systematically studied. In this study the authors evaluated the rates of EVD placement and shunt dependence, and risk factors for them, in a cohort of patients with ruptured AVMs.

Methods

The records of 87 consecutive patients with ruptured AVMs were reviewed for patient demographics, hemorrhage pattern, AVM angioarchitectural features, and surgical treatment. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate risk factors for EVD placement, permanent shunt dependence, and long-term outcome (as measured by the modified Rankin Scale).

Results

Thirty-eight patients (44%) required EVD placement, and 16 (18%) required a permanent shunt. Statistically significant risk factors for EVD placement in the univariate analysis included initial Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score (p = 0.002), the presence of intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH; p < 0.001), AVM-associated aneurysms (p = 0.002), and early surgery (p = 0.01). Multivariate analysis revealed only AVM-associated aneurysms as statistically significant (p = 0.006). Risk factors for shunt placement included initial GCS score (p = 0.003), IVH (p = 0.01), deep supratentorial location (p = 0.034), and associated aneurysms (p = 0.03). Multivariate analysis revealed initial GCS score as a statistically significant risk factor (p = 0.041) as well as a strong trend for associated aneurysms (p = 0.06). Patient age, sex, associated subarachnoid hemorrhage, AVM grade, AVM size, and deep venous drainage were not associated with EVD placement or long-term shunt dependence.

Conclusions

Hydrocephalus from AVM rupture was associated with initial GCS score, IVH, and AVM-associated aneurysms. Arteriovenous malformations with associated aneurysms thus not only have a greater risk of hemorrhage but also a greater risk of hemorrhage-associated morbidity as a result of hydrocephalus.