Music Therapy Should Be Conjunctive Treatment for Dementia Patients

Dementia is the loss of cognition function. This condition is rapidly becoming a huge challenge as well a leading cause of mortality and morbidity of the 21st century, especially in the western world, and the current prediction rates of dementia indicate that it will worsen. The numbers of the individuals affected by the condition is anticipated to rise due to the ever expanding older population. Despite the menace of this condition, the power of music, particularly in singing to jerk or unlock past memories and kick start the grey matter of the brain is an incredible feature of dementia care. Using music seems to reach parts of the damaged patient’s brain in unique ways that other means cannot (Geretsegger et al. (2014). In senior adults with dementia, Alzheimer’s, and other mental disorders, music therapy has shown capability of reducing agitated or aggressive behavior, improve cooperation with day-to-day activities such as bathing, improved mood, and reduce symptoms of dementia. Besides, music therapy can reduce the

In this research paper, the effectiveness of music therapy on the cognitive degenerative disorder of dementia will be evaluated. To support the contention that music therapy is effective in treating the symptoms of dementia, research documenting this therapy’s impact on memory, emotions, and behavior will be examined. In order to provide a greater understanding of music therapy and dementia, these terms will be defined. Second, research will be examined to determine music therapy’s impact on the psychological and behavioral issues associated with dementia. Finally, a summary of music therapy’s benefits and an evaluation of its effectiveness in treating individuals afflicted with dementia will be discussed.

The last technique of MT for dementia is combining music with activities. There are many more additional studies using MT which includes not only just melody but also with other activities like dancing, rhythmic movements, singing, playing instruments and more. Gómez-Gallego M and his colleagues asked forty-two minor to moderate AD to not only listen to the music they enjoy but also to dance, greet, play instruments and go on. The outcome of six-week intervention indicated that music with other activities could improve the cognitive status and alleviates neuropsychiatric symptoms of AD patients

Along with varying music to achieve different beneficial results from Alzheimer’s patients, there are many different activities that can help engage and improve the mental state of patients with Alzheimer’s from the early stages of the disease’s

This is the playlist I created that I would listen to at ninety years old. After listening to the playlist it changed my mood,took me back through a lot of great times and even made me want to get up and dance. Music is a good source to link memorie and even help someone get through stressful times. Music can also help a person express their personality. This treatment modality is effective for people with dementia because it can be way to recover lost memories from childhood. If the person may have had a bad morning it can change their day. Certain songs may help connect signficiant events in their life. For some people if they enjoyed dancing dancing in the younger days would make them think about their dance moves. Dementia is defined as

PICO framework (Patient / Population, Intervention, Comparison & Outcome) was used to formulate the report question. The PICO components help in identifying relevant information to guide investigations to produce the evidence required in a research (Polgar, 2013). An initial browse was carried out in order to get information on current evidence available and how it relates to clinical practice. Google Scholar and Google search was used in the initial browse using keywords from the PICO question, these words include dementia, music therapy, agitation in dementia, older adults. These provided information around the question area from articles, government policies and charity organisations for dementia. Evidence of this initial browse is provided

A music therapy intervention was done on 17 Alzheimer’s patients and 11 had shown less agitation after music therapy (Witzke, 2008). Typically if an Alzheimer’s patient was agitated, facilities would give medications or place them in physical restraints. On the other hand, using musical therapy is non detrimental and simple.

Alzheimer’s disease is an insidious illness which leads to cognitive and functional impairment, and is becoming more commonplace than ever before. There is no known cure, treatment, or prevention for this disease; in case of point, researchers have yet to discover a way to slow the progression of the illness. As the treatment of the physical manifestation of this disease is difficult to pinpoint, many researchers have dedicated their resources to finding ways to improve the quality of life of those who are diagnosed. Many patients with Alzheimer’s experience depression, anxiety, aggression, and social isolation as a result of their disease; these emotional responses can be treated. Social, music, and exposure therapy in a combined approach will significantly decrease depression scores on the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and reduce agitation scores on the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI). Participants exposed to our therapy program will show less physical and verbal aggression, demonstrate positive body language as observed by a third rater, increased brain stimulation reflected in fMRI scans and decelerated brain atrophy from the

A comprehensive literature review with sufficient depth and breadth was included in this quantitative study. A variety of previous researchers has provided evidence for the long-term effects of the music therapy on dementia patients and on their general recreational effects. According to Raglio et al 2010, it has illustrated that music therapist potentially implements musical parameters such as tempo, mode for activating social interaction, and well-being in older dementia patients finally described that physiological catecholamines, cytokines have profound effect on autonomous nervous system when stimulated by music. Casby et al 1994 have described that musical invention causes changes in the agitated behaviors in older dementia patients. Previous literature has profoundly described about the long term effects and physiological effects with

According to Alzheimer’s Disease International (2012), “ there are 36 million people living with dementia worldwide in 2010 and will increase to 66 million by 2030” (p. 7). There is no treatment and prevention currently available and many elderly people are diagnosed with the dementia. Dementia gradually destroys the cells in the brain responsible for memory, thinking, judgment, and behavior. The day-to-day activities and simple tasks can be confusing and frustrating for the dementia patient, reducing their quality of life (QoL). Maintaining and improving the QoL plays a vital role in improving the survival rate. I will be working with the dementia clients so, it is important to understand how to measure and improve the QoL in order to provide better services according to the patient 's needs. In this paper, I will address the standard instrument used in measuring the QoL, and the effectiveness of music therapy in enhancing and improving the QoL.

It provides some personal accounts of how older people “stay alive” by utilizing the creative aspects of making art. Art can help older people to review their lives and their therapy by creating and then reflecting on what they have made. Older adults respond to simple water coloring painting sessions with eagerness and activated minds, even while at different stages of Alzheimer’s and dementia. Music therapy helps increase socialization, relieving depressive, or improving self-esteem. For example, we had eighty- seven-year-old women who would not a response to anyone. She would just sit and look. We put her some headphones on, with music playing the woman shown a reaction. Older adults with cognitive impairment music can be used as an intervention. Most investigators came to the conclusion that music therapy is effective in reducing at least one behavioral and psychiatric symptom that accompanies dementia (Alexopoulus, Rawe, & Arean

This was a great video demonstrating the positive effects of music therapy. I think music therapy is a good method of treatment for patients with Alzheimer's. This allowed Henry to bring a sense of identity to himself. As his daughter mentioned, he used to love music and dancing. The music helped him remember the past and it also produced feelings of love. It was nice to see that he could experience those positive feelings from listing to music from his time. I think music really helps people with dementia. Before Henry was unresponsive and usually kept his head down. However, when he was listened to music his face was full of expression and his body moved to the music. The music helped communicate with others in the nursing home and his cognitive

Music is a practice of art that has prospered throughout the past and is consistently perceived as a mechanism for amusement and expression (12). However, not only it is music pleasant to the ear, but also has several positive outcomes on whoever is listening. Music therapy (MT) is employed to treat dementia patients for many years (7,8) and is currently being considered as an intervention to improve cognition in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients. In addition, a qualified music therapist always conducts MT, so that the therapist can control the healing according to different patients based on the mental and rehabilitative methods (10). Several articles have validated that MT can lessen cognitive deterioration particularly in autobiographical

Mohammadi et al. published “An evaluation of the effect of group music therapy on stress, anxiety and depression levels in nursing home residents” in the Canadian Journal of Music Therapy in January 2011. The study was a randomized, controlled trial, conducted to evaluate the effect of music therapy on stress, anxiety, and depression levels of a group of the elderly who resided in a nursing home. The experimental group received 10 weeks of daily, 90-minute sessions (which included listening to and creating music). The control group did not. The 21- item Depression Anxiety Stress Scale was used as a pre-and post-intervention measure in each group. Differences in pre- and post-intervention scores indicated significant reductions in mean scores of anxiety (P = .004), stress (P = .001), and depression (P < .001) in the experimental group as compared with the control group (no music), proving that participation in the sessions had improved levels of anxiety, stress, and depression.

Aside from emotions, music can also have an impact on mental illnesses like ADHD, depression, and dementia. To combat depression, Cadena states that “music therapy alleviates pain and promotes calmness by slowing the heart rate and other bodily functions” (2). It provides the patient with a means of escape from the stressful and painful ordeals of life, and can even encourage them to recover from depression. To help children with ADHD, music therapy and medications can be used conjointly. Music, Cadena affirms, “can provide a calming, sedative affect and assist a child with focusing on the task at hand” (2). In regards to dementia, a study was done to investigate the effects that music would have on people with the disease. The findings demonstrated that “mean agitation levels were significantly lower while listening to music than before listening to the music” (3).