Music Therapy & Alzheimer’s
This article explores the prevalence of music therapy in using non-invasive approaches to treat neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease.
Just as a famous neurology professor Bonakdarpour once said, “music memories often remain in the brain even as language and other memories disappear in dementia”. Music therapy has taken an impactful role in alleviating symptoms of a wide range of diseases from mental health disorders to neurological conditions. Unlike brain regions such as the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex that are affected during the early stages of Alzheimers, the cerebellum –involved in music perception– is not affected until a much later stage of the disease’s progression. Since music therapy interacts with brain regions that are less affected by neurodegeneration, it serves as a promising tool to enhance the quality of life of patients living with Alzheimer’s.
Music therapy is a form of intervention that utilizes music to address mental health concerns and neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s, anxiety, and sleep disorders. It can take place in a variety of settings, from schools and nursing homes to hospitals and rehabilitation centers. Moreover, it is gaining popularity because it allows medical providers to utilize a non-invasive and affordable way to alleviate symptoms in patients with a wide variety of disorders. This article reviews a study titled “Music therapy and Alzheimer’s disease: Cognitive, psychological, and behavioral effects”, which aims to determine if music therapy is effective in improving Alzheimer’s patients’ cognitive function, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and functional capability.
Methods
42 participants from Murcia, Spain were selected to participate in the study. They were diagnosed with either mild or moderate Alzheimer’s according to the Clinical Dementia Rating scale, and all participated in two weekly music therapy sessions over the course of six weeks. Before conducting the experiment, participants were asked about their musical preferences with a questionnaire. From the questionnaire, the researchers were able to choose songs that most participants would enjoy listening to during music therapy sessions. Each session started off with a welcome song in which all participants introduced themselves and greeted one another. Afterwards, they were asked to participate in a variety of activities, including moving their bodies, clapping to the rhythm of songs, guessing the names of the songs, and playing musical instruments. Lastly, each session ended with a farewell song. The participants underwent assessments that tested their cognitive abilities and neuropsychiatric symptoms three and six weeks after therapy.
Results
According to the results, participants’ skills like orientation, language, and memory significantly improved. Amongst patients with mild Alzheimer’s, their anxiety and disinhibition levels decreased significantly. Amongst patients with moderate Alzheimer’s, their overall symptoms related to behavioral functions decreased significantly — like delusions, hallucinations, agitation, anxiety, apathy, and disinhibition, and irritability levels. From the obtained results, researchers were able to conclude that music therapy has a positive impact on improving Alzheimer patients’ cognitive function, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and functional capability. In particular, music therapy is effective in reducing anxiety levels because it plays a significant role in regulating the endocrine and autonomic nervous system, which are responsible for maintaining homeostasis within the body and responding to stressed conditions. With the intervention of music, patients experience a decrease in the stress-induced response within the adrenomedullary and parasympathetic nervous system. The adrenal medulla is responsible for releasing hormones such as epinephrine and norepinephrine to cope with “fight or flight” responses while the parasympathetic nervous system returns the body to homeostasis after the stressor has passed. By reducing stress levels, individuals secrete lower levels of stress-induced hormones from their adrenal glands. As such, lower levels of stressors can preserve brain health and slow the progression of Alzheimer’s. Moreover, since music therapy is found to be positively associated with brain neuroplasticity, cognitive functioning levels amongst patients with Alzheimer’s increased by a significant amount as well.
Discussion
In terms of limitations of the study, the sample size is relatively small and participants were all recruited from a small city in Spain. Therefore, for future studies, it would be beneficial to acquire a larger sample size with participants from a more diverse population. Although music therapy cannot completely replicate the effects of drugs and medical surgeries, it is evident that it can be used to regulate patients’ moods, stimulate their neural connections, and reduce their neurological responses under stressful conditions. In the case of patients with Alzheimer’s, participating in regular music therapy sessions would mean a reduction in the prescription of psychotropic drugs, ultimately benefiting their overall quality of life as well as physical and mental well-being.
References
Gómez Gallego, M., & Gómez García, J. (2017a, June 1). Music therapy and alzheimer’s disease: Cognitive, psychological, and behavioural effects. Neurología (English Edition). https://www.elsevier.es/en-revista-neurologia-english-edition--495-articulo-music-therapy-alzheimer39s-disease-cognitive-S217358081730072X
August 29, 2022 | By Marla Paul. (2024, March 4). Music helps patients with dementia connect with loved ones. Northwestern Now. https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2022/08/music-helps-patients-with-dementia-connect-with-loved-ones/#:~:text=Music%20memories%20often%20remain%20in,later%20in%20the%20disease%20course
Harper, C. (2022, November 21). Music and alzheimer’s — benefits of music therapy. The Arbor Company. https://www.arborcompany.com/blog/music-and-alzheimers-benefits-of-music-therapy
