Music Therapy for Alzheimer's Disease
Recruiting in Palo Alto (17 mi)
+1 other location
Age: 18+
Sex: Any
Travel: May be covered
Time Reimbursement: Varies
Trial Phase: Academic
Recruiting
Sponsor: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Trial Summary
What is the purpose of this trial?This study compares different music therapy (MT) experiences and their impact on memory and language in patients with Alzheimer's disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment.
The 12-month study will assess the role of common experiences involving familiar music and other pleasant events (blinded control) to benefit cognition and measure the quality of life for people with Alzheimer's disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment.
Following screening, all participants will meet with a licensed music therapist at the first study visit. Thereafter, each group will have an individualized schedule of follow-up telephone calls and visits.
Screening for the study and participation in the study intervention can be completed in-person or from your home, if you do not live in the area.
How is the H3S music therapy treatment different from other treatments for Alzheimer's disease?
The H3S music therapy treatment is unique because it involves home-based, supervised singing sessions tailored to each individual, which can improve mood, social interaction, and cognitive functions without relying on medication. Unlike standard drug treatments, this therapy leverages the preserved musical memory in Alzheimer's patients to enhance their quality of life and reduce the need for tranquilizers and hypnotics.
24578What data supports the effectiveness of the treatment Music Therapy for Alzheimer's Disease?
Research suggests that music therapy can improve the quality of life for Alzheimer's patients by enhancing mood, communication, and social interaction. It may also help reduce the need for certain medications and support cognitive and motor functions.
12356Will I have to stop taking my current medications?
The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications. It is best to discuss this with the study team or your doctor.
Eligibility Criteria
This trial is for English-speaking individuals with Alzheimer's or mild cognitive impairment who have a study partner and can use a webcam or smartphone. They must be able to communicate verbally, live in the community, and not have significant health issues that could interfere with the study.Participant Groups
The study compares home-based music therapy through singing (H3S), individualized music therapy (IMT), and an attention control group involving pleasant events without music. It aims to see how these affect memory, language, and quality of life over 12 months.
3Treatment groups
Experimental Treatment
Placebo Group
Group I: Home-based MT through Supervised, Supported Singing (H3S)Experimental Treatment1 Intervention
Treatment arm 1
Group II: H3S and IMTExperimental Treatment2 Interventions
Treatment arm 2 received both Home-based Supervised, Supported Singing (H3S) and Individualized Music Therapy (IMT)
Group III: Attention Control (AtCon)Placebo Group1 Intervention
Comparison condition with comparable attention
Find A Clinic Near You
Research locations nearbySelect from list below to view details:
Louis Armstrong Center for Music and Medicine, Mount Sinai Beth IsraelNew York, NY
Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaiNew York, NY
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Who is running the clinical trial?
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaiLead Sponsor
References
The music therapy assessment tool in Alzheimer's patients. [2019]1. Empirical research is needed to evaluate immediate and sustained physiological, psychological, and psychosocial therapeutic effects, if any, of music therapy on behavioral patterns of elderly institutionalized Alzheimer's patients. 2. The Music Therapy Assessment Tool (MTAT) was specifically designed and developed to assess the effects of music therapy on behavioral patterns of Alzheimer's disease patients. 3. Preliminary testing of the MTAT suggests that it has fairly high internal consistency and inter-rater reliability and warrants consideration as a research tool. 4. Musical intervention included familiar music to facilitate communication and socialization, ethnic and nostalgic music to stimulate reminiscence, and melodies with distinctive rhythmic patterns to enhance movement and behavioral repatterning.
Alzheimer's disease: rhythm, timing and music as therapy. [2022]Active music-making provides a form of therapy for the Alzheimer's patient which may stimulate cognitive activities such that areas subject to progressive failure are maintained. Anecdotal evidence suggests that quality of life of Alzheimer's patients is significantly improved with music therapy, accompanied by the overall social benefits of acceptance and sense of belonging gained by communicating with others. Music therapy, when based on clear treatment objectives can reduce the individual prescription of tranquilizing medication, reduce the use of hypnotics and help overall goals of rehabilitation. Mood improvement and self-expression, the stimulation of speech and organisation of mental processes; and sensory stimulation and motor integration are promoted. Given that the rate of deterioration in Alzheimer's disease is not predictable, a series of single case experimental designs would generate valuable empirical data concerning treatment outcome and promote basic research into the timing functions required for the co-ordination of cognition, physiology, motor ability and the integrity of behaviour.
The Effect of Therapist and Activity Characteristics on the Purposeful Responses of Probable Alzheimer's Disease Participants. [2019]The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of individual therapist sessions on the purposeful responses of probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) participants (hereby designated as "dementia participants". Three music therapists and one occupational therapist individually presented a combined total of 29 sing-along and exercise sessions to a group of seven participants, six having a diagnosis of probable Alzheimer's disease (moderate to severe cognitive decline), and one nondementia "control" participant, at an adult day care center specializing in dementia. Informed consent procedures were given to all study participants and their families. Sixteen sing-along sessions of 25-45 minutes duration consisted of live guitar playing and singing by individual music therapists. Thirteen exercises sessions of 20 minutes in length consisted of individual therapist (music or occupational) leading of exercises to a music tape ("Everyone Can Move" by Farnan & Johnson, 1988). Independent variables and their response definitions included: activity type (Sing-along, exercise); session content (music intervals, nonmusic intervals); therapist type (music, occupational); and therapist styles (singing, guitar playing). Participant dependent measures included singing/humming to songs, and movement/exercise to a therapist model (purposeful responses). All sessions were videotaped. Results indicated that the six dementia participants as a group purposefully responded significantly more during exercise than during sing-along sessions, but one of the six participants had extremely low exercise participation scores. That one participant's scores in sing-along sessions were in the range of the majority (4 of 5) of the other dementia participants' singing scores. Further analysis to help explain the discrepancy in this participant's purposeful responding indicated no significant difference in responding to individual music or occupational therapists during exercise activities, but a significant difference in individual responding to 3 different music therapists during the sing-along activities. Addi6onal analyses of the sing-along activities revealed significant differences in the total percentage of singing and guitar playing by the individual music therapists. Implications of the results for music therapy programming with dementia clients are discussed.
[Music therapy and Alzheimer disease]. [2014]Music therapy and Alzheimer's dementia. Dementia such as Alzheimer's leads to the deterioration of the patient's global capacities. The cognitive disorders associated with it are disabling and affect every area of the patient's life. Every therapy's session undertaken with and by patients can act as a mirror of the progress of their disease and help to feel better, as described in this article on music therapy.
Adjunct effect of music therapy on cognition in Alzheimer's disease in Taiwan: a pilot study. [2020]Music therapy (MT) reviews have found beneficial effects on behaviors and social interaction in Alzheimer's disease (AD) but inconsistent effects on cognition. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the adjunct effect of long-term and home-based MT in AD patients under pharmacological treatment.
Study protocol for the Alzheimer and music therapy study: An RCT to compare the efficacy of music therapy and physical activity on brain plasticity, depressive symptoms, and cognitive decline, in a population with and at risk for Alzheimer's disease. [2022]There is anecdotal evidence for beneficial effects of music therapy in patients with Alzheimer's Disease (AD). However, there is a lack of rigorous research investigating this issue. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of music therapy and physical activity on brain plasticity, mood, and cognition in a population with AD and at risk for AD.
The promise of music therapy for Alzheimer's disease: A review. [2022]Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease associated with cognitive decline. Memory problems are typically among the first signs of cognitive impairment in AD, and they worsen considerably as the disease progresses. However, musical memory is partially spared in patients with AD, despite severe deficits in episodic (and partly semantic) memory. AD patients can learn new songs, encode novel verbal information, and react emotionally to music. These effects of music have encouraged the use and development of music therapy (MT) for AD management. MT is easy to implement and well-tolerated by most patients and their caregivers. Effects of MT in patients with AD include improved mood, reduced depressive scores and trait anxiety, enhanced autobiographical recall, verbal fluency, and cognition. Here, we review musical memory in AD, therapeutic effects of studies using MT on AD, and potential mechanisms underlying those therapeutic effects. We argue that, because AD begins decades before the presentation of clinical symptoms, music interventions might be a promising means to delay and decelerate the neurodegeneration in individuals at risk for AD, such as individuals with genetic risk or subjective cognitive decline.
The HOMESIDE Music Intervention: A Training Protocol for Family Carers of People Living with Dementia. [2022]Background: The number of people living with dementia (PwD) worldwide is expected to double every 20 years. Many continue living at home, receiving support from family caregivers who may experience significant stress, simultaneously to that of the PwD. Meaningful and effective home-based interventions to support PwD and their caregivers are needed. The development of a theory- and practice-driven online home-based music intervention (MI) is delivered by credentialed music therapists, nested within the HOMESIDE RCT trial. Methods: Dyads including the PwD and their family carer are randomised to MI, reading (RI) or standard care (SC). MI aims to support health wellbeing and quality of life by training caregivers to intentionally use music (singing, instrument playing, movement/dancing, and music listening) with their family member (PwD) in daily routines. MI is underpinned by cognitive, relational, social, and psychological theories of mechanisms of change. Results: Preliminary sub-cohort results analyses show MI can be delivered and is accepted well by participants and music-therapist interventionists across five countries. Conclusions: The specialist skills of a music therapist through MI enable carers to access music when music therapists are not present, to meet carer and PwD needs. Music therapists embrace this changing professional role, observing therapeutic change for members of the dyads.