Abstract
BACKGROUND: Classical music influences human physiology, such as the cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV), in healthy controls and during recovery from ischemic stroke. Aim of this prospective pilot-study was to investigate the effect of classical music on CBFV and other physiological parameters in patients suffering from aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). METHODS: Twenty patients with SAH were subjected to up to three interventions, in which the patients listened to W. A. Mozart's Symphony No. 40 in G minor. In parallel, CBFV in the right middle cerebral artery (MCA) was continuously measured using transcranial Doppler (TCD). TCD values were averaged per minute, normalized, and analyzed with a mixed-effects linear regression model. In addition, other physiological and laboratory parameters were evaluated. RESULTS: A total of 55 interventions were successfully carried out. The mixed-effects linear regression model revealed significant associations with both time (p < 0.001) and session (p = 0.002), specifically, with each minute of classical music played, there was a 0.3 % reduction in CBFV (95 % confidence interval (CI): 0.2-0.4 %). Heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) decreased by 0.1 % (95 % CI: -0.2-0.0 %; p = 0.043) 0.3 % (95 % CI: -0.6 % to -0.1 %; p = 0.001), respectively, per minute of exposure. Each additional session resulted in a reduction of HR by 4.3 % and RR by 22.3 % from the baseline at the start of the intervention to minute 25 (both p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our pilot study shows only a very small effect of classical music such as Mozart's Symphony No. 40 in G minor in patients with SAH.