Effects of Music on Agitation in Dementia: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Agitation is a common problem in patients suffering from dementia and encompasses a variety of behaviors such as repetitive acts, restlessness, wandering, and aggressive behaviors. Agitation reduces the probability of positive social interaction and increases the psychological and organizational burden. While medical interventions are common, there is need for complementary or alternative methods. Music intervention has been brought forward as a promising method to reduce agitation in dementia. While interventions, target groups and research designs differ, there has so far not been a systematic overview assessing the effect of music intervention for agitation in patients with dementia. A meta-analysis was conducted in order to investigate possible effects of music interventions. Twelve studies met inclusion criteria. Music intervention had a medium overall effect on agitation in dementia, suggesting robust clinical relevance. While the moderate number of studies does not allow for further differentiation between sub-types of music intervention, the sub-group comparisons indicated promising pathways for future systematic reviews. This meta-analysis is the first systematic and quantitative overview supporting clinically and statistically robust effects of music intervention on agitation in dementia. The analysis provides further arguments for this non-pharmacological approach and highlights needs for future systematic research reviews for the investigation of intervention types.

The Outcomes of a Person-centered, Non-Pharmacological Intervention in Reducing Behavioral and Psychiatric Symptoms in Residents With Advanced Dementia in Australian Rural Nursing Homes

“…Allowing for 10% attrition, the investigators have estimated that 70-80 residents from this cohort can ensure a statistical power of 0.80. This estimation is based on a recent meta-analysis on effect of music interventions on agitation, which reports an overall effect size (Cohen's d) of 0.61 calculated from 12 studies [19], and by adopting an alpha level of 0.05 and employing the algorithm [20]. This study adheres to the CONSORT guidelines.…”

A Systematic Review of the Literature for the Effects of Music on Dementia Patients

“…Pedersen et al (2017) [46] Music Therapy (MT) MT is a music intervention that is used to accomplish therapeutic goals of individuals by a professional who has completed a music therapy program. It addresses physical, cognitive, emotional and social needs.…”

Addressing Adventitious Behaviors Associated with Dementia

“…The second consideration is access to appropriate technology to implement desired interventions. A nurse may want to treat adventitious behaviors with music therapy, but if there is no instrument, radio, computer, or television dedicated to this purpose the intervention cannot be implemented [32].…”