Music Therapy for Patients With Alzheimer's Disease

NCT ID: NCT05151562

Last Updated: 2025-04-09

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 60 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2022-07-18
• Study Completion Date: 2026-04-30

Brief Summary

This study is designed to assess the feasibility that individualized reminiscence-based virtual music therapy sessions can enhance autobiographical memory, mood, and cognition in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or mild dementia due to Alzheimer's Disease (AD).

60 patients with MCI or mild dementia due to AD will receive two 30 minutes reminiscence-targeted virtual music therapy interventions per week for 8 weeks (a total of 16 sessions).

Participants' (or supported by the study partner) self-reported and measurable outcomes including cognitive, anxiety, quality of life, and autobiographical memory will be assessed before and after the 8-week course of treatment. Blood-oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) will also be also measured before and after the 8-week course of treatment.

Detailed Description

Despite advancements in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or mild dementia due to Alzheimer's Disease (AD) treatment, patients who live with these symptoms still have many unmet neuropsychiatric needs. In investigating holistic approaches to treatment generally, it is important to utilize non-pharmacological interventions.

Kelly and Ahessy implemented reminiscence-focused group music therapy to promote positive mood and engagement through musical expression (e.g. singing, moving, body percussion) and verbal interaction, using thematic sessions that reflected the music preferences of the participants. The researchers found that a balance of familiar structures, such as greeting and ending songs, paired with adaptability on behalf of the music facilitator created meaningful space for reminiscence and shared engagement. The researchers also identify music as a core element that facilitated the sharing musical and extramusical personal memories, as well as provided grounding and opportunities for re-connection during moments of disorientation within the group.

Although use of virtual music therapy due to COVID-19 has been increased, the impact of virtual music therapy sessions on reminiscence is minimally explored in the literature. A clear benefit of virtual music therapy is increased access to care for participants living in rural areas or for whom travel is difficult, enabling participation in meaningful interventions without disrupting daily routines. Additionally, the ability to engage in music therapy from the familiarity of one's own home has been shown to facilitate relationship development between patients with dementia and the patients' caregivers, as well as increase feelings of comfort and relaxation.

The present study seeks to expand upon previous work by adding a layer of personalization and engagement. Rather than simply assigning individuals a regimen of music listening, the investigators will engage participants in regularly occurring virtual music therapy sessions centered on playing familiar songs live and stimulating reminiscence through autobiographical conversation. Such a study offers several advantages over previous similar studies' formats as it (a) allows researchers to maintain maximum control over how the treatment is administered, (b) saves participants and caregivers the stress of traveling for therapy (especially pertinent given the study's older demographic), (c) allows participants autonomy over when and where the participants engage in therapy, likely from the comfort of home, and (d) provides opportunities for music therapy to become a meaningful twice-weekly routine for both participants and the participants' care partners. Appreciating music is far greater than simply listening to it, and this study seeks to utilize the transformative power of individualized live music therapy interventions.

Participants with MCI or mild dementia due to AD will attend 30-minute reminiscence-targeted virtual music therapy during an 8 week, twice-weekly course of music therapy (a total of 16 sessions) through a Zoom. Participants' cognitive, anxiety, quality of life, and autobiographical memory level will be measured pre- and post- 16 virtual music therapy sessions. Brain activation patterns using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) will be compared before and after virtual music therapy sessions to understand if individualized virtual music therapy sessions can change cortical activity.

Conditions

Mild Cognitive Impairment; Alzheimer Disease

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Virtual Music Therapy

Participants will attend two 30 minutes long virtual music therapy sessions per week for 8 weeks using Zoom.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Virtual Music Therapy

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Each study participant will receive two 30-minute live synchronous virtual music therapy sessions per week for a period of 8 weeks to be delivered by a board-certified music therapist (using Zoom as a primary platform). These individualized therapeutic encounters will use music that is personally meaningful and familiar to the participant and the participant's loved ones to facilitate reminiscence. Decision-making processes made by the music therapist will reflect a flexible session structure and series of intervention choices contingent on each participant's cultural identity, expressive and receptive communication, fine and gross motor ability, affect, orientation to time and place, and personal preferences on any given day.

Interventions

Virtual Music Therapy

Each study participant will receive two 30-minute live synchronous virtual music therapy sessions per week for a period of 8 weeks to be delivered by a board-certified music therapist (using Zoom as a primary platform). These individualized therapeutic encounters will use music that is personally meaningful and familiar to the participant and the participant's loved ones to facilitate reminiscence. Decision-making processes made by the music therapist will reflect a flexible session structure and series of intervention choices contingent on each participant's cultural identity, expressive and receptive communication, fine and gross motor ability, affect, orientation to time and place, and personal preferences on any given day.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Age 18-89
• Mild Cognitive Impairment (MoCA score: 18-25) or Early AD (MoCA score: 17-24)

Exclusion Criteria

• Head trauma, traumatic brain injury, or concussion with loss of consciousness for >2 minutes
• Claustrophobia incompatible with MRI scanning
• Medical device incompatible with MRI scanning (e.g. cardiac pacemaker, implanted cardiac defibrillator, aneurysm brain clip, inner ear implant)
• Prior history as a metal worker and/or certain metallic objects in the body

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 89 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

Johns Hopkins University

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Alexander Pantelyat, MD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Locations

Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

United States

Central Contacts

Alexander Pantelyat, MD

Role: CONTACT

apantel1@jhmi.edu

4105023290

Kyurim Kang, PhD

Role: CONTACT

kkang19@jhmi.edu

4437422223

Facility Contacts

Alexander Pantel, MD

Role: primary

apantel1@jhmi.edu

Kyurim Kang, PhD

Role: backup

kkang19@jhmi.edu

References

Cummings JL. The Neuropsychiatric Inventory: assessing psychopathology in dementia patients. Neurology. 1997 May;48(5 Suppl 6):S10-6. doi: 10.1212/wnl.48.5_suppl_6.10s.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 9153155 (View on PubMed)

Galasko D, Bennett D, Sano M, Ernesto C, Thomas R, Grundman M, Ferris S. An inventory to assess activities of daily living for clinical trials in Alzheimer's disease. The Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 1997;11 Suppl 2:S33-9.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 9236950 (View on PubMed)

Nutt D. The Hamilton Depression Scale--accelerator or break on antidepressant drug discovery? J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2014 Feb;85(2):119-20. doi: 10.1136/jnnp-2013-306984. No abstract available.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 24443712 (View on PubMed)

Logsdon RG, Gibbons LE, McCurry SM, Teri L. Assessing quality of life in older adults with cognitive impairment. Psychosom Med. 2002 May-Jun;64(3):510-9. doi: 10.1097/00006842-200205000-00016.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 12021425 (View on PubMed)

Mullensiefen D, Gingras B, Musil J, Stewart L. The musicality of non-musicians: an index for assessing musical sophistication in the general population. PLoS One. 2014 Feb 26;9(2):e89642. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0089642. eCollection 2014.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 24586929 (View on PubMed)

Nasreddine ZS, Phillips NA, Bedirian V, Charbonneau S, Whitehead V, Collin I, Cummings JL, Chertkow H. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment, MoCA: a brief screening tool for mild cognitive impairment. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2005 Apr;53(4):695-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2005.53221.x.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 15817019 (View on PubMed)

Spielberger CD, Gorsuch RL, Lushene R, Vagg PR, Jacobs GA. Manual for the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, C. A. Palo Alto, Ed. 1989.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Gerdner LA, Hartsock J, Buckwalter KC. Assessment of personal music preference (family version). The University of Iowa Gerontological Nursing Interventions Research Center: Research Development and Dissemination Core, Iowa City, Iowa. 2000.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Bunnell SL, Legerski JP, Herting NR. The autobiographical memory test: Differences in memory specificity across three recall elicitation methods. Current Psychology. 2018 Jul 18:1-8.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Kelly L, Ahessy B. Reminiscence-Focused Music Therapy to Promote Positive Mood and Engagement and Shared Interaction for People Living With Dementia: An Exploratory Study. InVoices: A World Forum for Music Therapy 2021 Jul 1 (Vol. 21, No. 2). GAMUT-Grieg Academy Music Therapy Research Centre (NORCE & University of Bergen).

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Other Identifiers

IRB00274248

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id