Happy 4th of July to all of our US readers! In this post we will be looking at recent articles that focus on the use of music for rehabilitation. All articles are open-access, meaning you can follow the links to read the entire article! Enjoy!

Bodak et al. (2014) demonstrated the potential for instrument playing to help with visuo-spatial neglect in persons who have had stroke. This was a within-subject design (where participants served as their own control) with two patients. They use instruments aligned chime bars horizontal plane and were used to play scales or familiar melodies for the patients. Patients completed the exercises and also completed homework between sessions. This study provides some initial evidence that playing music can help with neglect; however, more research is needed with larger populations and a non-musical control condition.

Merrett et al. (2014) published a paper describing the possible mechanisms that drive success with Melodic Intonation Therapy technique. The authors group the mechanisms into four categories including neuroplastic reorganization, activation of the mirror neuron system, utilization of shared or specific features of music/language, and motivation. Overall this paper is fun to read, as it pulls together research on MIT and explains how these mechanisms may work together (rather than be considered competing explanations). I was excited to see that this paper included motivation as a mechanism for why MIT may be effective, as it often seems like this component of music in therapy is overlooked (in my opinion).

Van Vugt and colleagues (2014) investigated music-assisted motor training on pairs of individuals. They questioned if the social aspect of music would impact motor rehabilitation.PArticipants learned to play simple songs on the piano in order to improve fine motor skill.  Participants were then continued their training with a partner and either played in synchrony with the partner or took turns playing the patterns. Results indicated that both groups improved significantly on standard fine motor tests. Participants that took turns showed greater improvements. This study provides some initial evidence that services provided to small groups may be effective for fine motor rehabilitation.

References:

Bodak R, Malhotra P, Bernardi NF, Cocchini G and Stewart L (2014) Reducing chronic visuo-spatial neglect following right hemisphere stroke through instrument playing. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 8:413. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00413 PMID: 24966827

Merrett DL, Peretz I and Wilson SJ (2014) Neurobiological, cognitive, and emotional mechanisms in Melodic Intonation Therapy. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 8:401. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00401 PMID: 24917811

Van Vugt FT, Ritter J, Rollnik JD and Altenmüller E (2014) Music-supported motor training after stroke reveals no superiority of synchronization in group therapy. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 8:315. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00315 PMID: 24904358

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