The effect of audio therapy to treat postoperative pain in children undergoing major surgery: a randomized controlled trial
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Published on: May 26, 2023
B S Sunitha Suresh1, Gildasio S De Oliveira, Santhanam Suresh
1Department of Pediatric Anesthesiology, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
Insights
Music and audiobooks effectively reduced post-surgical pain in children undergoing major surgery compared to silence. Audio therapy is a valuable strategy for pediatric pain management.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Surgery
- Pain Management
- Clinical Trials
Background:
- Post-surgical pain is a significant concern in pediatric patients undergoing major surgical procedures.
- Effective non-pharmacological interventions are needed to complement existing pain management strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the analgesic efficacy of music and audiobooks in children after major surgery.
- To compare the pain burden reduction between music, audiobook, and silence groups.
Main Methods:
- Prospective, randomized controlled trial involving children undergoing major surgery.
- Patients were randomized into three groups: music, audiobook, or silence (control).
- Pain burden was measured as the area under the pain scale over time within 48 hours postoperatively.
Main Results:
- A total of 56 patients completed the study.
- Both music and audiobook groups showed significant pain burden reduction compared to the control group (P=0.04).
- Linear regression confirmed an independent effect of audio therapy on pain reduction.
Conclusions:
- Audio therapy, including music and audiobooks, is an effective adjunct for reducing post-surgical pain in children.
- Audio therapy should be considered a key strategy in managing pediatric surgical pain.
Purpose:
To evaluate the analgesic effect of music and audiobooks in children undergoing major surgical procedures when compared to a control (silence) group.
Methods:
The study was a prospective and randomized trial. Children undergoing major surgeries were randomized to one of the three groups: music, audiobook or control (silence). The primary outcome was the pain burden reduction by two treatments within 48 h postoperatively. Pain burden was measured using the area under the pain scale versus the 30 min interval for each treatment.
Results:
60 patients were recruited and 56 completed the study. Pain burden was reduced in the music and audiobook groups compared to control, median (IQR) of -60 (-90 to 0), -45 (-90 to 0) and 0 (-30 to 90) (min × pain score), respectively, P = 0.04. A linear regression analysis demonstrated an independent group effect on pain reduction even after adjusting for the mean pain scores recorded at the beginning of the treatment, slope of regression line -56.8 ± 24 goodness of fit r (2) = 0.25 and slope significantly different from 0 (P = 0.02).
Conclusions:
Audio therapy is an efficacious adjunct method to decrease post-surgical pain in children undergoing major surgeries. Audio therapy should be considered as an important strategy to minimize pain in children undergoing major surgery.