Surgery with Music Series Post #10: How does music affect other medication requirements

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 This is such a simple concept, and yet, very few hospitals or sugery centers implement therapeutic music.  There are many, many studies that document that music pre- and post-surgery can decrease the use of  anxiety medications before and pain medication afterwards.  Studies have been conducted on major hospitals and universities all over the world.  As recently as April 1, 2011 I presented a Grand Rounds at Cleveland Clinic Florida that went over the top studies for music before, during and after surgery.  To see highlights of this, click HERE.

How does it work?  Before surgery, when you put on the headphones, the music enters your brain through the 8th cranial nerve.  Within moments, you close your eyes and your heartrate and breathing begin to slow down and become steady.  You begin to relax, naturally, and the need for I.V. anxiety medication greatly reduces.  After surgery, the headphones are again used as you move into the recovery area and your body stays relaxed as you come out from under the anesthesia. 

The recovery room is known for it’s busy-ness and (often) lack of peace and quiet.  In today’s crowded hospitals, nurses are trying to take care of many patients at the same time and those without music are often moaning and crying out.  Those with the headphones are not only staying relaxed, but the headphones help block out other patients cries and sounds of pain and discomfort.

Some hospitals have tried having CD players at bedside, but that doesn’t work nearly as well as the pre=programmed headphones.  A recent patient wrote this to me:

  • I kept expecting to be nervous  as the date of surgery rolled around but couldn’t seem to summon up any anxiety
  • My blood pressure has dropped to normal limits
  • I “knew ” I wouldn’t be able to sleep prior to surgery but guess what I slept well
  • I was calm and relaxed before surgery
  • The dentist and staff tucked me in, made sure I had my music (I had my i POD set to repeat ) and away we went.
  • Post -op I was still relaxed – had a sleep and had little pain- I had a bunch of work done – I did take an Advil at bedtime just for “insurance” but really didn’t need it.
  • My mouth is healing beautifull

Thank you for the wonderful music.

Blessings, Anne

If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to leave them as comments on this blog and I will get right back to you!

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Surgery with Music Series: Post #9 “How much does music affect the anesthesia requirement of a patient?”

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 We’ve established that anesthesia is a modern wonder, of sorts.  Nevertheless, we also established that it carries with it certain risks and dangers, the worst of which would be an untimely death.  Anesthesia MUST be administered by a medical specialist, an anesthesiologist who has gone beyond the MD degree to specialize in anesthesia.

Besides finding the very best anesthesiologist your hospital offers, what else can you do?   You already know that I’m going to recommend using slow, steady, purely instrumental music that has the tempo of the resting healthy heartbeat.  And not from a nearby boombox or ipod on speakers or even an iPod with earbuds.  My recommendation is to use cordless/wireless headphones that are already pre-programmed with the ideal music for surgery under general anesthesia.

Why?  Because we know that even when the hearing has shut down from the effects of the general anesthesia, the body still responds to the vibrations coming through the headphones into the body.  When this happends, the process called entrainment is triggered and the heartrate and breathing synchronize with the music, keeping the body relaxed and in need of less anesthesia. Just imagine how nervous your would be if you knew your body had a serious problem and you were going to be put to sleep and operated on? Your body would be very tense and it would like require more anesthesia to put you to sleep that if you’ve been listening to slow, steady music for 45 mins or so before you’re taken into surgery?  At this moment, a scientific study is being done with our headphones at a large hospital here in Lousiville, KY to measure the exact effects and benefits of these headphones.  Tomorrow we’ll look into the benefits of these headphones with regional anesthesia!

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Are there any drawbacks to music with surgery?

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You know, I’ve asked myself that many times and I’ve talked with surgeons and anesthesiologists about it.  Very simply, the answer is no!  Music during surgery has absolutely no drawbacks but stands to improve the outcome of the surgery.  How does this happen? 

When the patients has slow, steady, purely instrumental music coming through headphones, the body’s heart-rate and breathing synchronize with the pulse of the music and keep the patients bio-rhythms slow and steady.  When this happens, the patients stays relaxed and stabilized naturally and does not require as much anesthesia during the procedure or as much pain medication afterwards.

When the patient chooses his own favorite slow, steady music and listens to that through wireless/cordless headphones, the procedure will be safer (as a result of less anesthesia) and the patient will recover faster and go home faster.  I recently got a testimonial from a patient who raves about how well his heart surgery went.  To see this video testimonial, go to www.surgicalserenity.com.

Please let me know any questions you might have!

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Surgeon reports that music during surgery has many benefits

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By TERRY RINDFLEISCH/La Crosse Tribune – http://www.lacrossetribune.com/

Jane Zellmer was anxious about her second knee replacement surgery.

The first surgery on her left knee was done under general anesthesia. She said she doesn’t do well under general anesthesia, and she had a difficult time waking up and was nauseous the first time.

This time the 54-year-old Ettrick, Wis., woman wanted spinal anesthesia, which would allow her to be conscious while numbing her right knee.

Zellmer also chose music to help with her anxiety and make her relax. Mike Jacobson, a nurse anesthetist at Franciscan Skemp, had a library of music from which she could pick. She chose her favorite music, country, and a favorite artist, George Strait.

With her headphones on, she listened to Strait’s music during surgery.

“It was very calming listening to the music, and I was comfortable,” Zellmer said. “I was nervous about the spinal anesthesia, but the music helped me relax.

“I felt like I was lying in the sun with headphones on,” she said. “Music did its thing, and it was a place to go, something to escape into. The spinal anesthesia and music worked real well together.”

For several years, a number of hospitals, including Franciscan Skemp and Gundersen Lutheran, have offered music to patients during surgery. Zellmer heard about the use of music through a friend who listened to music during surgery at Gundersen Lutheran.

More and more hospitals are using music for patients because research is showing it helps reduce moderate pain and anxiety, and it might result in less sedation and faster recovery.

A Yale University showed patients listening to music required much less sedation during surgery. Another study showed listening to music helps minimize the rise in blood pressure associated with surgery. Researchers say the best results are likely to come from people being able to listen to the music of their own choice rather than being given music thought to be soothing.

For many years, surgery rooms have been filled with the sound of music selected by and for surgeons.

“Music often helps surgeons relax, and some like it for background music,” Jacobson said. “One surgeon likes very loud rock ’n’ roll.

“Patients have their own music option, but it’s the surgeon’s choice in the room,” he said. “I’ve never been asked what I want to hear, but I think whatever music helps the surgeon is a good choice.”

Dr. Mark Connelly, a Gundersen Lutheran facial plastic surgeon, has played music in his operating room for more than 25 years. He has a CD of Broadway show tunes, pop, country and classical music.

“The music is soothing, and it helps me relax,” Connelly said.

“Occasionally, the staff will sing along to ‘Stand By Your Man,’” he said. “Surgeons get to choose the music, but it’s nice when the operating group likes it.”

Jacobson is one of the DJs at Franciscan Skemp. He is in charge of a cart of CDs from which patients can choose, or they can bring in their own CDs.

“Some people like country, some like classical and some New Age, but more patients like soothing music,” Jacobson said. “Music does help calm the patient.”

Dr. Marisa Baorto, a Franciscan Skemp anesthesiologist, said music is used in conjunction with “conscious sedation,” such as spinal and regional anesthesia, for surgeries such as foot, carpal tunnel, knee replacement and breast biopsies.

Baorto said some pregnant women bring in their own music to listen to during labor.

“A lot of patients enjoy the music, and then they don’t have to hear what’s going on in surgery,” Baorto said. “Music helps them phase out and get less sedation.”

Jacobson said he can tell the difference in patients who enjoy the music.

“We can tell the patient is more calm,” Jacobson said. “I don’t think it is fluff. There are benefits to the patient, even some benefits during general anesthesia.”

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Smartphones in surgery?

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The question has been asked of us, whether or not smartphones are allowed in surgery?  The answer appears to be a resounding “yes!!” 

Smartphones have apparently been in the operating room for many years now and are primarily being used by the doctors and staff to get quick information. 

Of course our purpose is to stream music to the patient through our surgery music app.  Our patented process will be available for smartphones by the end of the year and will probably appeal to a younger, more “techie” population.  It will also be extremely affordable and not require any outside approval or permissions.  Stay tuned for updates to this exciting innovation from Surgical Serenity Music.

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Music therapy in critical care: indications and guidelines for intervention.

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Have you ever been in a hospital, as a patient, for any reason?  If so, you know that a hospital is no place to get a rest.  A hospital is a noisy place with ambulances coming in and out, overhead paging of doctors and hospital information and patients and families conversing or perhaps in pain.

Then there are family members and visitors out in the halls, laughing, crying and talking loudly.  For people who are in ICU or PACU, it’s even harder because the patient feels so bad and is much sicker than they’ve ever been.

Music is such an easy intervention, especially headphones with a choice of favorite music.  And yet most hospitals still have the ubiquitous TV up on the wall with bad news, soap operas, etc. blasting away!  It really is quite inhumane I think! 

Just came across this bit of medical/nursing research on music in the hospital and wanted to share it with you immediately!

Crit Care Nurse. 1999 Jun;19(3):35-41.

University of Iowa, College of Nursing, Iowa City, USA.

Abstract

Music therapy is an effective intervention for critically ill patients for such purposes as anxiety reduction and stress management. The therapy is readily accepted by patients and is an intervention patients thoroughly enjoy. The MAIT is one resource that nurses caring for critically ill patients can use to implement music therapy in clinical practice. Patients can be given the opportunity to select a musical tape they prefer and to negotiate with the nurse for uninterrupted music-listening periods. Allowing patients control over music selection and providing uninterrupted time for music listening gives the patients an enhanced sense of control in an environment that often controls them.

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Music and Surgery coming to Lexington!

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Dr. Jay Zwischenberger, UK chief of surgery, plays his harmonica. Staff and patients are said to find “Dr. Z’s” music a source of reassurance and comfort. June 13, 2008 Musicians have long known intuitively that experiencing the rhythms, harmonies and melodies of music —as listener or performer— can help mend the troubled mind, body and soul. And health professionals have long shared an intuitive understanding that this healing quality of music has a lot to offer medical science; witness the calming heart-rate monitors in a Savannah neo-natal ward as the regular visits of a harpist get underway. Now these enduring intuitions are converging to form the basis of an innovative program integrating the arts in health care at the new Chandler Medical Center at the University of Kentucky.

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Hospitilizations and Music

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I’ve just found out that my mother is back in the hopital. I’m so disappointed and sad because she seemed to be doing so well, but when you have multiple chronic conditions, it really is to be expected I guess. The picture here was made of my mother on her 82nd birthday just a little over a month ago. She was feeling just great then! Anyway, she will undoubtedly be listening to her favorite music while there but she’ll also be listening to basketball games on TV because she loves sports of all kinds!! I think when a person is in the hospital the best plan is to let them listen to what they choose but just be sure to offer lots of good music to them. I’ll keep you posted!
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Music for Surgery: Profile of Hysterectomy Patient

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This past week, a dear friend of mine experienced a surgery that she was not looking forward to. (But then, who does look forward to surgery?) She had known for some time that she needed to have some large fibroid tumors removed, but did not think she would need a complete hysterectomy until a month before she had it. We talked many times about how she would use music before, during and after the surgery, but she had no idea how glad she would be that she had it ready to go when she arrived at the hospital that morning.

My friend had carefully chosen Handel’s “Watermusic Suite” to have playing through headphones during the surgery, but almost as soon as she arrived, things began to go awry. During the wait to be called back for getting into a gown and getting the IV started, she began listening to her chosen music. When she was finally called in, thee staff wouldn’t allow any family members to go with her although all she was doing was changing clothes and she was clearly scared beyond what she expected. They finally did let her sister and me go back but then informed her that they couldn’t find any of her pre-surgery blood work and would have to do it all again! She turned up her music and stuck out her arm for a repeat of the procedure she dreads so much. Shortly after that, a nurse came in telling her that they had found the blood work from three days before. My friend almost started crying but instead looked at us and pressed repeat on the CD Walkman.Then the anesthesiologist arrived. She was a woman in her forties at most, and was “all business.” There was no smile, no “how are you doing?” nothing. She even began to berate my friend when informed that someone had donated blood for her, saying that she was sure they wouldn’t use it unless it had been typed for an exact match. My friend said “but O+ is the universal donor for other + types and the doctor glared and said “I know that!!!”

It was like a scene from a bad soap opera but my friend remained steadfast now with her trusty CD player mostly obliterating the conversation that her sister and I were having with this physician.Finally, the surgeon entered the room and she was as kind as could be. Soon, my friend was wheeled away and the OR staff assured us they would change the CD to the recovery music once the surgery was finished. This, they did. We never expected these kinks in the process, but my friend has said that the music made such a difference in being able to tolerate these difficulties and that in the recovery room, she was able to recognize the music she had chosen. The familiarity provided comfort and reassurance to her that words could not have provided. Studies continue to come out that document this anecdotal report.

Please remember this when you or a friend needs surgery. It is so easy and so worthwhile. My “Music for Surgery “ audio tapes are intended to help prepare you mentally, emotionally and spiritually for surgery. They work well for the preop, operative and postop periods of your surgical experience. I also offer links to amazing music for purchase through Amazon online that can also help significantly. You won’t believe the results!

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