Highlights
- •music therapy may be an additional, non-pharmacological treatment for children with refractory epileptic seizures.
- •the Mozart set of different compositions can be better accepted and effective than the K448 only.
- •music therapy can also improve quality of life, including behavior disorders and night-time sleep instability.
Abstract
In this prospective, randomized, open label study, we compared the effect on seizure
recurrence and quality-of-life parameters, of two different protocols of music therapy
in children and adolescents with refractory epileptic encephalopathies. Nine out of
19 patients (13 males and 6 females, aged between 1 and 24 years) were randomized to listen to Mozart's sonata in D major for two pianos K448
for 2 h/day for 2 weeks; other 10 children were randomized on a set of Mozart's compositions.
In group 1 (K448), 2/9 children (22.2%) had a ≥75% seizure decrease; two patients had less than 50% seizure reduction, and the other
five were unchanged.
In group 2 (set Mozart), 7/10 patients (70%) had a significant seizure reduction (specifically,
≥50% in 1/10; ≥75% in 4/10; 100% in 2/10).
An overall more significant behavioral improvement including less irritability and
tearfulness, reduced self-/heteroaggression, a better daytime vigilance, and nighttime
sleep quality, was also reported in children from group 2.
In conclusion, the present study seems to confirm that music therapy may be an additional,
nonpharmacological, effective treatment for patients with refractory epileptic seizures
in childhood. The Mozart's set of different compositions can be better accepted and
effective than the K448.
Keywords
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Epilepsy & BehaviorAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- The acute effect of music on interictal epileptiform discharges.Epilepsy Behav. 2004; 5: 662-668
- Mozart K.448 and epileptiform discharges: effect of ratio of lower to higher harmonics.Epilepsy Res. 2010; 89: 238-245
- The long-term effect of listening to Mozart K.448 decreases epileptiform discharges in children with epilepsy.Epilepsy Behav. 2011; 21: 420-424
- Is there a chronic change of the “Mozart effect” on epileptiform activity? A case study.Clin Electroencephalogr. 1999; 30: 44-45
- The Mozart effect: encore.Epilepsy Behav. 2007; 11: 152-153
- Refractory nonconvulsive status epilepticus responsive to music as an add-on therapy: a second case.Epilepsy Behav. 2010; 19: 539-540
- Mozart K.448 acts as a potential add-on therapy in children with refractory epilepsy.Epilepsy Behav. 2011; 20: 490-493
- Reduction of seizure occurrence from exposure to auditory stimulation in individuals with neurological handicaps: a randomized controlled trial.PLoS One. 2012; 7e45303
- Mozart's music in children with drug-refractory epileptic encephalopathies.Epilepsy Behav. 2015 Sep; 50: 18-22
- An historical commentary on the physiological effects of music: Tomatis, Mozart and neuropsychology.Integr Physiol Behav Sci. 2000; 35: 174-188
- Proposal for revised clinical and electroencephalographic classification of epileptic seizures.Epilepsia. 1981; 22: 489-501
- Mozart K.448 listening decreased seizure recurrence and epileptiform discharges in children with first unprovoked seizures: a randomized controlled study.BMC Complement Altern Med. 2014; 13: 14-17
- Effect of music on the recovery of a patient with refractory nonconvulsive status epilepticus.Epilepsy Behav. 2010; 18: 491-493
Article info
Publication history
Published online: November 25, 2017
Accepted:
September 28,
2017
Received in revised form:
September 21,
2017
Received:
June 29,
2017
Identification
Copyright
© 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
