Music during surgery can reduce need for drugs and help patients recover faster, scientists find
New study reveals the healing power of music during surgery
- A new study indicates that patients listening to calming instrumental music during surgery require less anaesthetic and experience reduced physiological stress.
- The research, conducted at Lok Nayak Hospital and Maulana Azad Medical College in India, involved 56 patients undergoing laparoscopic gallbladder removal surgery between March 2023 and January 2024.
- Patients in the music group needed substantially less propofol, the primary intravenous anaesthetic, and fewer additional doses of the opioid painkiller fentanyl.
- Physiological stress, measured by serum cortisol levels, was markedly lower in patients exposed to music, who also woke up more smoothly from anaesthesia.
- The study concluded that receptive music therapy is a safe and effective non-pharmacological aid to reduce intraoperative anaesthetic requirements and improve overall patient outcomes.