Dissertation - World Federation of Music Therapy

commercially available as the MusiCure series) to decrease anxiety, pain and
perceived side effects of patients in post operation recovery units.
There are very few studies reporting the effect of relaxation and/or music listening on
anxiety, perceived side effects and quality of life in cancer patients undergoing
chemotherapy in the literature. However, a small number of investigations all indicate
that relaxation (including guided imagery) combined with music listening may be an
effective psychoemotional adjunct treatment to chemotherapy (Frank 1985; Standley
1992; Weber et al. 1997; Xie et al. 2001).
In the area of pain management Zimmerman et al (1989) designed a study to
determine the effects of listening to relaxing music with the purpose of facilitating
pain reduction in patients with cancer who were receiving scheduled pain medication.
Participants chose between ten different instrumental music programs and were asked
to select a type of music by which they would normally be relaxed. Results indicated
that 30 minutes of preferred music listening may be effective in the reduction of
cancer pain. Reilly (1996) studied the effect of relaxation, imagery and music as
adjuncts for pain control in male clients with lower limb injuries (n=17). She found a
decrease in in frequency of oral postoperative medications plus an unexpected
decrease in the sense of anxiety in the preoperative holding area in the experimental
group. Abel et al. (1996) studied the effects of selected music (Bach’s Nun komm der
Heiden Heiland and Stockhausen’s Klavierstück I on cardiovascular-respiratory
parameters og chronic back pain patients (n=29). The musical stimuli did not induce
thropotropic or ergothropic states of CNS functions; however, vascular-respiratory
changes were noted during the Bach-listening, namely as an increase in variability of
both the plethysmogram amplitude and the respioratory cycle time (airflow), while a
decrease in the same parameters were noted during the Stockhausen-listening.
Bailey (1983) compared the effect of live music singing and guitar playing to the
effects of tape-recorded presentations of the same material on tension-anxiety and
vigour as experienced by hospitalized cancer patients (n=50). Participants were
randomly placed into the live or taped music categories and listened to 25 min of
music. Results indicate that music performed live has particular efficacy to assist in
relieving tension and promoting vigour as compared to recordings of the same music.
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