Music therapy for psychiatric in-patients with
schizophrenia can improve some of the symptoms of the disorder, a
new study has found.
Whereas the effects of listening to music and
singing have been examined among people with long-term mental
health problems, the effects of ‘co-improvisational music therapy’
among people with acute schizophrenia, have not been evaluated.
The aims of this exploratory study, published
in the November issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry, were to
examine the feasibility of a randomised trial of music therapy for
in-patients with schizophrenia, and to explore its effects on
mental health.
81 in-patients at one of four hospitals in
central and inner London were randomised to receive music therapy
or standard care alone. Those receiving music therapy received up
to 12 sessions, once a week, for up to 45 minutes.
During sessions, patients were given access to
a range of musical instruments, and encouraged to use them to
express themselves. All sessions were digitally recorded.
The focus of the therapy was on creating
improvised music together with the therapist, with talking used to
guide, interpret or enhance the musical experience.
Initially the therapist listens carefully to
the patient’s music and accompanies them closely, seeking to meet
their emotional state in musical terms. Then the therapist offers
opportunities to extend or vary the nature of the musical
interaction.
Supervision of music therapists involves
reflection on the meaning of the interaction between therapist and
patient, and close examination of the co-improvisations by
listening to recordings of the sessions.
Most of the people had not been to a group or
other therapeutic activity in the two weeks before the study, but
those randomised to music therapy attended an average of 8 sessions
over the following 12 weeks.
Positive and negative symptoms of
schizophrenia were measured, and it was found that changes in total
scores among those patients receiving music therapy were
significantly greater than in those receiving standard care.
The authors of the study comment that the
results showed that such a trial is feasible, and that the majority
of the patients offered music therapy will accept it.
Referral for music therapy was associated with
short-term reductions in general symptoms (depression) and negative
symptoms of schizophrenia, although variations in baseline
characteristics of the study sample may have been responsible for
these apparent differences.
The researchers believe that the study
provides sufficient evidence to justify a larger explanatory
randomised trial of music therapy for people with schizophrenia,
designed to explore the effects and cost-effectiveness of this kind
of therapy.
For further information, please contact Liz Fox or Deborah
Hart in the Communications Department.
Telephone: 020 7235 2351 Extensions. 6298 or 6127
References:
Talwar N, Crawford MJ, Maratos A, Nur U, McDermott O and Procter S (2006) Music therapy for in-patients with schizophrenia: Exploratory randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Psychiatry, 189, 405-409.