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Music Therapy and MusicMedicine
Music Therapy and MusicMedicine
Substantial and steady progress both in research and clinical application of Music in
Medicine has occurred during the last 25 years (ref. 1-7). Added to the 50 years of research
and application of Music Therapy we now have solid evidence that music has reproducable
effects and valuable preventive, therapeutic and rehabilitative properties. We propose to
define the therapeutic use of Music in Medicine as MusicMedicine (one word, 2 capital "M"):
MusicMedicine means the scientific evaluation, as well as the practical application of musical
stimuli in prevention, therapy, and rehabilitation, in order to prevent disability or illness, to
complement usual medical treatment, or to facilitate rehabilitation, always considering the
particular disability or illness, medication and procedures involved in each individual.
This approach is much broader as compared to Music Therapy, which especially in central
Eurpope is mainly understood as part of psychiatric care or psychotherapy (ref. 8, 9).
Actually, considering only this kind of Music Therapy means to neglect the by far larger part
of the "market segment" for music: health care in general, including prevention and
rehabilitation, even palliative care. In the United States there is a broader approach and the
combined strength of MusicMedicine and Music Therapy working cooperatively with music
products industry adds new fields every day.
So far most scientific research focussed upon music complementing medical procedures.
Collaborative studies have been and are still conducted together with several university
hospitals and institutes in Europe, USA, Australia and Japan since 1975. We use music in
clinical settings where patients suffer from distress, anxiety, pain and disability. For instance
a sequence of clinically controlled studies has been conducted demonstrating the reduction of
distress, anxiety and pain through a selection of specific music in various treatment situations
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in anesthesia, surgery, dentistry, obstetrics, pediatrics, geriatrics, pain therapy and
rehabilitation. Specific programs for receptive application as well as for enhancement of
physical exercises have been designed to match various situations. Effects of music are
monitored through physiological (stress hormones, cardiovascular parameters, vegetative
rhythmicity, etc.) clinical (drug consumption, etc.) and psychological parameters (doctor-
patient-relationship, subjective treatment outcome, psychological tests, etc.). Cost benefits
(reduced drug consumption, shortened duration of hospial stay, doctor-patient-relationship)
are evaluated.
We use specifically designed programs, which are composed, arranged, recorded, mixed and
presented according to guidelines we elaborated from our practical experiences as well as
from our research findings. One such program helps to control the activity level and the
degree of cooperation/compliance of patients during unpleasant treatment procedures. Other
programs offer better self-control against pain, stress and sleep disorders (ref. Schlaf).
Designing such programs there are some structural guidelines for receptive music
applications in medical settings. The most important parameters seem to be musical rhythm
and dynamical range. Our impression is that in general rhythm is the most effective musical
structure in medical settings. A constantly growing number of people are for instance
experiencing the benefits of Rhythm for Life programs in the United States.
Another field where we use specific music programs is long-term rehabilitation. Those
programs combine musical stimuli with verbal suggestions and instructions for physical
exercises. The aim is to support and prolong physical rehabilitation programs for instance
after surgery or trauma or in chronic pain beyond hospital stay (ref. 13). Specific Neurologic
Music Therapy (ref. 14) is a new tool to treat neurologic movement disorders caused by for
instance Parkinson´s disease or stroke.
Also music instruments are used by the patients in physical therapy and rehabilitation. An
example is the socalled "Hanging Xylophone" which I designed to enhance motor exercises
for patients suffering from a syndrome called "Frozen Shoulder", a pain-induced stiffened
shoulder joint.
Making music can be a diagnostic tool. There is a huge variety of applications already well
documentated in the literature. Only to mention one application which makes use of the
advances in electronic music production: a piano-keyboard or a sound module linked to a
computer via MIDI-interface is a tool to evaluate motor task performance of the body, an
important measure in neurological disorders, focal dystonia, as well as after trauma, and not
only for musicians.
The methodology and the technical equipment used to apply music must meet the practical
needs of every different situation. In the treatment of chronic pain for instance only
loudspeakers can be used, while in acute pain as in surgery earphones are most suitable. In
chronic pain the music must be free of any guiding rhythmic structure, whereas in acute stress
situations as well as in physical therapy rhythm must be pronounced. The design of
instruments used to enable or enhance physical exercises must be specifically adapted to the
needs of the patients and to the goals of the intervention.
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In general, conducting MusicMedicine studies, the standards of research in clinical applied
studies have to be fullfilled, i.e. state-of-the-art clinically controlled research designs with a
solid statistical evaluation must be secured. This can be achievd at best through
multidisciplinary research groups.
Results
Medical effects
Results and practical experiences with about 120 000 patients demonstrate an improvement in
patient care and treatment outcome in 95% of all cases. Stress hormone levels in blood, pain
perception, electrical brain activity as measured through EEG, drug demand for anesthesia
and pain relief, all show a significantly better outcome for music patients as compared to non-
music patients.
It is important to note, that we find identical effects in different cultural spheres such as
Europe, North America and Japan. However, the selection of music and music instruments
used needs to be adjusted to socioethnical characteristics.
Economical impacts
Besides the medical advantages there are of course also economic benefits. Through a
reduction of sedatives usually used to prepare patients for medical treatment such as regional
anesthesia down to 50% of the usual dosage our hospital saves about 3 000.00USD per year.
Through shortening the duration of stay on an average of 3 days in an Intensive Care Unit for
premature infants about $3 000.00 per baby per day can be saved.
Earlier discharge of elderly patients after eye-surgery saves the costs for 1 day of hospital
care.
Enhancement of general patient compliance during treatment and rehabilitation saves costs,
too.
OECD reports as well as several recent national health care surveys provide strong evidence
as to the economic importance of the findings listed above (ref. 10, 11):
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• costs for one day of hospital care (averaged):
(remark: Germany has 3 million hospital patients with an average duration of hospital
stay of 10 days)
In future "health providers" and "music providers" will interact much more than today. The
reasons are manyfold.
Six important trends concerning basic future developments in society in addition to specific
changes in health care philosophy can be observed and should be considered.
Sociodemographic trends
There is a new but substantial, yet widely untapped general market potential in the
demographic development in our societies all over the world: we are getting older:
• In North America and Europe there will be twice as many elderly people within the
next thirty years, i.e. 35% of the population will be older than 60 years.
• In Germany 4,5 million people will be older than 80 years at that time.
• Already today 53% of our people die in a hospital.
• Every third surgical procedure is carried out with patients over 70 years old.
• At the same time the number of people with mental or physical disabilities will
probably double during that period.
• Already today 20% of the American as well as of the European population need
increasing health support, most of it dealing with prevention of disability and
rehabilitation of disability.
• "Market strategies" for health care providers, musicians and the music products
industry need a redefinition in so far as music can significantly help to preserve
wellness, social function and health, which obviously is the core task for society in
this century.
Sociomedical trends
a) We all recognize that todays curative medicine has reached its limits:
- therapeutically, as medical science has to realise that the availability of high-tec equipement
is not congruent with better patient care in general.
- economically, as all health care systems in the world are running high financial deficits.
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b) Another fundamental paradigm shift ocurrs in our medical agenda: the goals are
redefined. Therapy of illness/disability is no longer number one priority. Prevention and
rehabilitation are the main goals in todays health care politics.
We had to learn that more health and more wellness for more people can be achieved and
afforded only through more prevention and better rehabilitation.
This fact is recognized nowadays in politics, this fact is increasingly taken into consideration
by insurance companies and "health providers".
c) Earlier discharge from hospital and enforced out-patient treatment are distinct goals of
health politics all over the world.
d) The medical and scientific communities all over the world are now ready to accept
complementary therapies (see for instance NIH Office for Alternative Medicine).
f) MusicMedicine saves money, mainly through a reduction of treatment time and drug
demand.
The observations outlined above lead to certain predictions with regard to the
interrelationship of music and health care.
In health care research efforts will be directed at developing health support methods which
are holistic and affordable. MusicMedicine is one of these methods.
In both, the haelth industry as well as in the music industry new product developments will
be significantly affected by demographic changes and by research in education and health
care within the next two decades.
This gives the Art of Music a chance to underline substantially its importance in human life,
not only as a part of leisure time activities or pure aesthetic experience, but as to preserve
humanity itself where it is endangered: in illness, disability and aging.
we should
• develop/adjust appropriate methodes, musical instruments and technologies for use in
medical settings,
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• create appropriate music programs for use in medical settings.
Practical applications
we should support the implementation of existing and already successfully used programs,
methods, technologies and instruments on a larger scale.
Education
we should support the implementation of more postgraduate courses and PhD programs in
MusicMedicine and Music Therapy such as the one at Hochschule für Musik und Theater
Hamburg.
All three measures together will facilitate the worldwide implementation of music in
prevention, therapy and rehabilitation, thus opening substantial new opportunities in health
care.
Acknowledgement:
the author is indebted to his wife Sybille Gonserowski-Spintge, Dipl.Bw., CEO OrgAlytic
Consulting Inc., for her valuable input with regard to the economic aspects of music in health
care.
Furthermore the author thanks Hans-Helmut Decker-Voigt PhD MA, Dr.med.Roland Droh,
Rosalie R. Pratt EdD, Maureen Reilly PhD CPT CRNA, Michael Thaut PhD for sharing their
concepts and research findings.
The author also gratefully appreciated the valuable critique of parts of the manuscript
provided by Norman Goldberg, MMus.
References
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Graham-Pole, J. (1994). Creating An Arts Program In An Academic Medical Setting.
Int.J.Arts Med. III/2, pp.17-25
Spintge R. (1998) Verspannungsschmerz (Myofascial Pain). Handbook & CDs. Hamburg:
Polymedia
Thaut, M. et al. (1999) The New Field of Neurologic Music Therapy: Neuroanatomical,
Scientific and Therapeutic Foundations. 9th World Congress of Music Therapy. Washington
D.C.
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