Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2010 Dec;3(3):242-6.
doi: 10.2174/1874609811003030242.

Effects of music therapy on psychological symptoms and heart rate variability in patients with dementia. A pilot study

Alfredo Raglio  1 , Osmano Oasi, Marta Gianotti, Veronica Manzoni, Silvia Bolis, Maria C Ubezio, Simona Gentile, Daniele Villani, Marco Stramba-Badiale
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Effects of music therapy on psychological symptoms and heart rate variability in patients with dementia. A pilot study

Alfredo Raglio et al. Curr Aging Sci. 2010 Dec.

Abstract

We assessed the effects of music therapy (MT) on behavioral and psychological symptoms (BPSD) in dementia associated with changes in physiological parameters, as heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV). Twenty subjects were randomly assigned to MT treatment or standard care; all patients underwent neuropsychological assessment and ECG Holter recordings before and after the 15-week treatment. The treatment included 30 MT sessions. Depression significantly decreased (p=0.021) in the MT group. PNN50 improved in 50% patients of the MT group, but in none of the control group (p=0.013). MT may improve symptoms of depression and increase HRV in demented patients.

PubMed Disclaimer

Publication types