This randomized controlled trial investigated the effect of live music on quality of life and depression in 47 older people with dementia using the Dementia Quality of Life and Geriatric Depression Scale. The control/reading group reported higher mid-point feelings of belonging than the music group (F(1, 45) = 6.672, p < .05). Sub-analyses of ≥ 50 per cent music session attendance found improvements in self-esteem over time (F(2, 46) = 4.471, p < .05). Participants with scores that were suggestive of increased depressive symptoms had fewer depressive symptoms over time (F(2, 22) = 8.129, p < .01). Findings suggest music and reading activities can improve self-esteem, belonging and depression in some older people with dementia.
Access Economics. (2009). Keeping dementia front of mind: Incidence and prevalence 2009-2050. Canberra: Alzheimer’s Australia.
2.
American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 4th edn. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
3.
Ashida, S. ( 2000). The effect of reminiscence music therapy sessions on changes in depressive symptoms in elderly persons with dementia. Journal of Music Therapy, 37, 170-182.
4.
Ayalon, L., Gum, A.M., Feliciano, L., & Arean, P.A. ( 2006). Effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for the management of neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients with dementia. Archives of International Medicine, 166, 2182-2188.
5.
Berger, G., Bernhardt, T., Schramm, U., Müller, R., Landsiedel-Anders, S., Peters, J. ... Frolich, L. ( 2004). No effects of a combination of caregivers support group and memory training/music therapy in dementia patients from a memory clinic population. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry , 19, 223-231.
6.
Boso, M., Politi, P., Barale, F., & Emanuele, E. ( 2006). Neurophysiology and neurobiology of the musical experience . Functional Neurology, 21, 187-191.
7.
Brod, B., Stewart, A., Sands, L., & Walton, P. ( 1999). Conceptualization and measurement of quality of life in dementia: Dementia quality of life instrument (DQoL). The Gerontologist, 39, 25-35.
8.
Brotons, M., Koger, S.M., & Pickett-Cooper, P. (1997). Music and dementias: A review of the literature. Journal of Music Therapy, 34, 204-245.
9.
Bruer, R.A., Spitznagel, E., & Cloninger, C.R. (2007). The temporal limits of cognitive change from music therapy in elderly persons with dementia or dementia-like cognitive impairment: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Music Therapy, 44, 308-328.
10.
Bulechek, G.M., & McCloskey, J.C. (1999). Nursing interventions: Effective nursing treatments, 3rd edn. Philadelphia, PA: W. B. Saunders Company.
11.
Chambless, D., & Hollon, S.D. ( 1998). Defining empirically supported therapies. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66, 7-18.
12.
Choi, A., Lee, M.S., Cheong, W., & Lee, J. ( 2009). Effects of group music intervention on behavioural and psychological symptoms in patients with dementia: A pilot-controlled trial . International Journal of Neuroscience, 119, 471-481.
13.
Clair, A.A., & Bernstein, B. ( 1990). A preliminary study of music therapy programming for severely regressed persons with Alzheimer’s-type dementia. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 9, 299-311.
14.
Cohen-Mansfield, J., & Mintzer, J.E. ( 2005). Time for change: The role of nonpharmacological interventions in treating behaviour problems in nursing home residents with dementia. Alzheimer Disease and Associated Disorders, 19, 37-40.
15.
Cohen-Mansfield, J., & Werner, P. ( 1997). Management of verbally disruptive behaviours in nursing home residents. Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, 52A, 369-377.
16.
Crystal, H.A., Grober, E., & Masur, D. ( 1989). Preservation of musical memory in Alzheimer’s disease . Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 52, 1415-1416.
17.
Dileo, C., & Bradt, J. (2005). Medical music therapy: A meta-analysis and agenda for future research. New Jersey: Jeffrey Books.
18.
Ebberts, A.G. ( 1994). The effectiveness of three types of music therapy interventions with persons diagnosed with probable dementia of the Alzheimer’s type who display agitated behaviours. Unpublished master’s thesis, University of Kansas.
19.
Evans, D., Wood, J., & Lambert, L. ( 2003). Patient injury and physical restraint devices: A systematic review. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 41, 274-282.
20.
Ferri, C.P., Prince, M., Brayne, C., Brodaty, H., Fratiglioni, L., Ganguli, M., ... Scazufca, M. ( 2005). Global prevalence of dementia: A Delphi consensus study . Lancet, 366, 2112-2117.
21.
Folstein, M., Folstein, S., & McHugh, P. (1975). Mini-mental state. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 12, 189-198.
22.
Gerdner, L. ( 1997). An individualized music intervention for agitation. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association, 3, 177-184.
23.
Gerdner, L.A. ( 1999). Individualized music intervention protocol. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 25, 10-16.
24.
Goodall, D., & Etters, L. ( 2005). The therapeutic use of music on agitated behaviour in those with dementia. Holistic Nursing Practice, 19, 258-262.
25.
Hicks-Moore, S.L. ( 2005). Relaxing music at mealtime in nursing homes: Effects on agitated patients with dementia. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 31(12), 26-32.
26.
Hollis, S., & Campbell, F. ( 1999). What is meant by intention to treat analysis? Survey of published randomized controlled trials. British Medical Journal, 319, 670-674.
27.
Holmes, C., Knights, A., Dean, C., Hodkinson, S., & Hopkins, V. ( 2006). Keep music live: Music and the alleviation of apathy in dementia subjects. International Psychogeriatrics, 18, 623-630.
28.
Hughes, J.C. ( 2002). Ethics and the psychiatry of old age. In R. Jacoby & C. Oppenheimer (Eds.), Psychiatry in the elderly (pp. 863-895). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
29.
Kruse, R.L., Alper, B.S., Reust, C., Stevermer, J.J., Shannon, S., & Williams, R. ( 2002). Intention-to-treat analysis: Who is in? Who is out? Journal of Family Practice, 51(11), 969-971.
30.
Kumar, A., Tims, F., Xruess, D.G., & Mintester, M.J. (1999). Music therapy increases serum melatonin levels in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Alternative Therapies in Health Medicine, 5, 49-57.
31.
Kurlowicz, L. ( 1999). The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). The Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing, Division of Nursing, New York University . http://consultgerirn.org/topics/depression/want_to_know_more
32.
Ledger, A.J., & Baker, F.A. ( 2007). An investigation of long-term effects of group music therapy on agitation levels of people with Alzheimer’s Disease. Aging & Mental Health, 11, 330-338.
33.
Leibovici, A. ( 2009). Principles of geriatric psychopharmacology. In W. E. Reichman & P. R. Katz (Eds.), Psychiatry in long-term care (pp. 289-310). New York: Oxford University Press.
34.
Montori, V.M., & Guyatt, G.H. ( 2001). Intention-to-treat principle. Canadian Medical Association, 165, 1339-1341.
35.
Myskja, A., & Nord, P.G. ( 2008). ‘The day the music died’: A pilot study on music and depression in a nursing home. Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 17, 30-41.
36.
Nugent, N. ( 2000). The effects of live versus taped preferred songs on individuals with dementia of the Alzheimer’s type displaying agitated behaviours. Unpublished master’s thesis, University of Melbourne, Australia.
37.
Polit, D., Beck, D., & Hungler, B. ( 2001). Essentials of nursing research: Methods, appraisal, and utilization, 5th edn. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
38.
Pollack, N.J., & Namazi, K.H. ( 1992). The effect of music participation on the social behaviour of Alzheimer’s disease patients. Journal of Music Therapy , 29, 54-67.
39.
Raglio, A., Bellelli, G., Traficante, D., Gianotti, M., Ubezio, M.C., Villani, D., & Trabucchi, M. ( 2008). Efficacy of music therapy in the treatment of behavioural and psychiatric symptoms of dementia. Alzheimer’s Disease and Associated Disorders, 22, 158-162.
40.
Rio, R. ( 2002). Improvisation with the elderly: Moving from creative activities to process-oriented therapy. The Arts in Psychotherapy , 29, 191-201.
41.
Robinson, L., Hutchings, D., Dickinson, H.O., Corner, L., Beyer, F., Finch, F., ... Bond, J. ( 2007). Effectiveness and acceptability of non-pharmacological interventions to reduce wandering in dementia: A systematic review. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 22, 9-22.
42.
Sansoni, J., Marosszeky, N., Jeon, Y.-H., Chenoweth, L., Hawthorne, G., King, M., ... Low, L. ( 2007). Final report: Dementia outcomes measurement suite project . Australia: Centre for Health Service Development, University of Wollongong.
43.
Schafer, J.L. ( 1999). NORM: Multiple imputation of incomplete multivariate data under a normal model, version 2.
44.
Senn, S. (1993). Cross-over trials in clinical research. Chichester: Wiley.
45.
Sink, K.M., Holden, K.F., & Yaffe, K. ( 2005). Pharmacological treatment of neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia: A review of the evidence. Journal of the American Medical Association, 293, 596-608.
46.
Sixsmith, A., & Gibson, G. ( 2007). Music and the wellbeing of people with dementia. Ageing and Society, 27, 127-145.
47.
Sloane, P., Zimmerman, S., Williams, C., Reed, P., Gill, K., & Preisser, J. ( 2005). Evaluating the quality of life of long-term care residents with dementia. The Gerontologist, 45, 37-49.
48.
Snowdon, J., & Fleming, R. ( 2008). Recognising depression in residential facilities: AnAustralian challenge. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 23, 295-300.
49.
Sung, H., & Chang, A.M. ( 2005). Use of preferred music to decrease agitated behaviours in older people with dementia: A review of the literature. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 14, 1133-1140.
50.
Suzuki, M., Kanamori, M., Nagasawa, S., Tokiko, I., & Takayuki, S. ( 2007). Music therapy-induced changes in behavioural evaluations, and saliva chromogranin A and immunoglobulin A concentrations in elderly patients with senile dementia. Geriatrics and Gerontology International , 7, 61-71.
51.
Suzuki, M., Kanamori, M., Watanabe, M., Nagasawa, S., Kojima, E., Ooshiro, H., & Nakahara, D. ( 2004). Behavioural and endocrinological evaluation of music therapy for elderly patients with dementia. Nursing and Health Sciences, 6, 11-18.
52.
Svansdottir, H.B., & Snaedal, J. ( 2006). Music therapy in moderate and severe dementia of Alzheimer’s type: A case-control study. International Psychogeriatrics , 18, 613-621.
53.
Takahashi, T., & Matsushita, H. (2006). Long-term effects of music therapy on elderly with moderate/severe dementia. Journal of Music Therapy, 43, 317-333.
54.
Tuet, R.W.K., & Lam, L.C.W. (2006). A preliminary study of the effects of music therapy on agitation in Chinese patients with dementia . Hong Kong Journal of Psychiatry, 16(3), 87-89.
55.
Vink, V., Birks, J., Bruinsma, M., & Scholten, R. (reprint 2005). Music therapy for people with dementia. This is a reprint of a Cochrane Review, prepared and maintained by The Cochrane Collaboration and published in The Cochrane Library 2005, Issue 3.
56.
Yesavage, J.A., Brink, T.L., Rose, T.L., Lum, O., Huang, V., Adey, M.B., & Leirer, V.O. ( 1983). Development and validation of a geriatric depression screening scale: A preliminary report. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 17, 37-49.
