The musical experience impacts on the elderly octogenarians’ cognition a pilot study

Abstract

The elderly population growth is a world phenomenon, and in Brazil, the modifications are done in a radical and very accelerated way. Currently, the data indicate that the elderly form a population of 30 million individuals and this number in bound to increase to 57 million by 2040. The present pilot study aimed at investigating the musical experience impact on the octogenarian’s cognition in the city of São João del Rei/Minas Gerais/Brazil. The research was approved by the ethics committee with a favorable assent from the Human Research Ethics Committee of the São João del Rei Federal University(UFSJ) –Number 3.685.143 (05/11/2019).All the participants completed 2 questionnaires: The Mini-Mental and the Portuguese version of the Brief Music Experience Questionnaire (Brief MEQ).The statistical analyses searched to compare the extreme score values from the BRIEF M.E.Q Questionnaire, that is, the 1 st Quartile X 4 th Quartile of this sample were compared in relation to the performance in the Mini-Mental (cognitive performance). The results indicate that the group with more intense musical experience (4 th Quartile) show scores significantly higher in the Mini-Mental (p<0.01).It was concluded that the musical practices constitute themselves as an important protective strategy for elderly cognition, having a favorable impact in the life quality of this population. New studies, with a more robust sampling, will be necessary to evaluate this theme more clearly, also adding other variables such as physical activity, socio-economical and schooling levels.