[Effect of music on anxiety and pain in patients with mechanical ventilation]

The power of music to relieve anxiety or pain has been widely used throughout history.

To evaluate effects of music on anxiety and pain in patients on invasive mechanical ventilation.

A randomized controlled trial with repeated measures.

This was a randomized, experimental prospective study in a tertiary hospital conducted from January 2009 to June 2010. The sample was made up of 44 participants. Intervention consisted in a 30-minute musical session in which the subject used a headset and was in an individual room. For the control group, the usual setting of an intensive care unit was maintained unchanged. Each patient underwent a minimum of 3 and maximum of 5 sessions. The patient per se selected the music from among a selection prepared by the investigator team. Anxiety and pain and hemodynamic variables of heart rate, respiratory rate systolic and diastolic blood pressure were measured at baseline, after the music session and then one-hour later.

Music therapy significantly decreased anxiety score (P=.000) when measured with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) scale. There were no differences in pain in the experimental group (P=.157) when measured with the visual analogue scale. No summative effects were demonstrated during multiple sessions.

Music reduces anxiety in patients with invasive mechanical ventilation. Invasive mechanical ventilation can be established as a non-pharmacologic tool added to the available therapeutic options.