Physiological effects of music therapy in neonatal intensive care setting: An observational study

Objectives

Music therapy can ease a neonate's distress and may provide physiological improvements during hospitalization. In this study, we investigated physiological effects of music therapy on patients in a neonatal intensive care (NICU) population.

Methods

Music therapists performed culturally significant interventions in concordance with AMTA guidelines. To quantitatively assess physiological changes from these sessions, we measured patient distress along with cardiovascular monitor measurements before and after a standard music therapy session in 106 non-intubated neonates without sedation in a Level 3 NICU.

Results

51.7% of subjects were male, while 48.3% of patients were female. 46.2% of the neonates were Caucasian. 37.7% were Hispanic/Latino. 16.0% had other ethnic backgrounds. On average, patients demonstrated a 12 beats/min reduction in heart rate and a 3.9% increase in Oxygen Saturation (p < 0.05) after the conclusion of a session. A salient finding from this analysis was blood oxygen saturation improvement that was greater in females (6%) than males. Additionally, 81.3% of neonates experienced greater improvement when starting a music therapy intervention within the first five days of hospitalization.

Conclusion

Our research suggests that as little as fifteen minutes of music therapy, patients experienced a significant decrease in distress, heat rate, and an increase in oxygen saturation levels. These physiological changes imply an overall improved patient experience after a music therapy session.