Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 28, 2025
Clinical Practice Protocol of Creative Music Therapy for Preterm Infants and Their Parents in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Published on: January 7, 2020
Neurologic Music Therapy Improves Participation in Children With Severe Cerebral Palsy
Clara Susana Santonja-Medina1, Eugenio Marrades-Caballero2, Fernando Santonja-Medina3,4
1Professional Music Conservatory Carcaixent, Valencia, Spain.
Insights
Neurologic music therapy (NMT) using therapeutic instrumental music performance (TIMP) with percussion instruments significantly improved participation and motor skills in children with severe cerebral palsy (CP). This intervention enhanced engagement and movement complexity during music creation activities.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pediatrics
- Rehabilitation Medicine
Background:
- Neurologic music therapy (NMT) shows promise for improving motor function in children with cerebral palsy (CP).
- Severe bilateral CP presents significant challenges in motor control and participation in daily activities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify improvements in participation and manual task complexity in children with severe bilateral CP undergoing NMT.
- To assess the impact of therapeutic instrumental music performance (TIMP) on motor learning and psychomotor intervention intensity.
Main Methods:
- An analytic quasi-experimental study involving 17 children with severe CP.
- 13 NMT sessions utilizing percussion instruments for TIMP.
- Hoisan software for video recording to quantify participation and active movements.
Main Results:
- Significant improvements observed in participation variables: 'visual contact,' 'motor participation,' and 'motor participation repetitions.'
- Significant differences noted in manual activity subcategories: 'reaching and stroke,' 'hitting with the hand,' and 'grasping and hitting.'
Conclusions:
- Therapeutic instrumental music performance (TIMP) effectively enhances participation in manual activities for children with severe CP.
- NMT utilizing percussion instruments intensifies psychomotor intervention, leading to improved motor engagement and skill execution.
Abstract:
Positive effects after neurologic music therapy (NMT) have been described regarding the motor function of children with severe cerebral palsy (CP). This study aimed to quantify improvements in participation, as well as complexity on task-related manual activities in children with severe bilateral CP. This analytic quasi-experimental study exposed 17 children with severe cerebral palsy to 13 NMT sessions to improve motor learning through therapeutic instrumental music performance (TIMP), using principally percussion musical instruments. Hoisan software video recording was used to quantify participation involved in creating music. In addition, the number of active movements performed in each NMT session was quantified. Significant improvements were found in the participation variables "visual contact," "motor participation" and "motor participation repetitions." Significant differences were also found in the subcategory "reaching and stroke," "hitting with the hand" and "grasping and hitting." The use of therapeutic of TIMP in children with severe CP improves participation during manual activities utilizing percussion instruments, therefore increasing the intensity of the psychomotor intervention.
