Washington, Jan 23 : Music therapy may help in combating depression and improve, restore and maintain patients' health, says a new study.
Music therapy may help in combating depression and improve, restore and maintain patients' health, says a new study.
It is often seen that people under depression have a disturbed appetite, sleep patterns and overall functioning as well as low self-esteem and feelings of worthlessness and guilt. According to the statistics around 121 million people are globally suffering from depression.
Drugs and psychotherapy are common treatments for depression but a systematic review from the Cochrane Library found that music therapy might offer a hope for people to get out of depression.
The team examined international literature and identified five studies that met their criteria.
They found that four out of five studies accounted for greater decrease in symptoms of depression among people treated with music therapy.
Anna Maratos, lead author and an Arts Therapist in Central and Northwest London Foundation NHS Trust, London, UK said that the area was worth investigation and find out which forms have greatest effect.
"While the evidence came from a few small studies, it suggests that this is an area that is well worth further investigation and, if the use of music therapy is supported by future trials, we need to find out which forms have greatest effect," said Maratos.
"The current studies indicate that music therapy may be able to improve mood and has low drop-out rates.
"It is important to note that at the moment there are only a small number of relatively low quality studies in this area, and we will only be confident about the effectiveness of music therapy once some high quality trials have been conducted," she added. (ANI)
© 2007 ANI
Music really can dispel your blues
