Another first-person account of music during surgery!

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.”

Two Major Hospitals Now Recommend Music with Surgery

In the past two months, both the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota and the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio have come out advocating music!  The Mayo Clinic said:

"Research on the effectiveness of music therapy dates back to the 1920s, when a study reported individuals' blood pressure dropped when listening to music. Currently, our program is conducting a research study to measure the effects of music therapy on pain, anxiety and tension. As part of the Cardiovascular Surgery Healing Enhancement Program, rooms for cardiac surgery patients have music systems. A selection of CD music is available at each cardiac surgical unit. "

The Cleveland Clinic said:

"Research on music and the brain has shown that it can reduce stress, alleviate pain and promote relaxation. And new research from the Cleveland Clinic shows that music can even reach into deep brain structures unrelated to hearing and memory to literally soothe nerves.

Patients receiving deep-brain-stimulation surgery for Parkinson's disease, essential tremor and several other conditions have to be awake for much of the surgery to tell surgeons if their symptoms improve when electrodes are placed deep in their brains.

All of this is very exciting news to me as I am hoping to make my surgical headphones standard in hospitals around the world.  Right now I am selling them online at http://www.surgicalheadphones.com/, but I hope eventually to sell them to hospitals so that they can give them to all surgical patients.  Stay tuned!  The big launch will be in 2010!

Cleveland Clinic researchers find music can have a soothing effect during brain surgery

Cleveland Clinic researchers find music can have a soothing effect during brain surgery
By Brie Zeltner, The Plain Dealer

December 01, 2009, 12:01AM



Lynn Ischay, The Plain DealerDr. Damir Janigro, left, a neuroscientist at the Cleveland Clinic, found that melodic passages of music seemed to calm patients when played while they remainied conscious during deep brain stimulation. With Janigro, in this picture from 2007, is Italian cellist Umberto Clerici. They are holding the 1769 Guadagnini cello that belonged to Janigro’s father, the great Italian cellist Antonio Janigro, which Clerici has on loan.

If you've ever come home after a long day and turned on, say, Brahms to relax, or jacked up the volume on Queen's "We Are the Champions" to get psyched for a workout, you know that music can change your mood.



Research on music and the brain has shown that it can reduce stress, alleviate pain and promote relaxation. And new research from the Cleveland Clinic shows that music can even reach into deep brain structures unrelated to hearing and memory to literally soothe nerves.



Patients receiving deep-brain-stimulation surgery for Parkinson's disease, essential tremor and several other conditions have to be awake for much of the surgery to tell surgeons if their symptoms improve when electrodes are placed deep in their brains.



"I witnessed several hundred brain surgeries with awake patients, and I noticed that these patients were going through a very traumatic experience, much worse than a root canal, for hours, and yet they were wide awake. So they need to be conscious, but no one said that they have to be upset or bored."

Damir Janigro, Cleveland Clinic neuroscientist

Neuroscientist Damir Janigro took advantage of this conscious period to play clips of music for the patients to see what effect it had on their brain function and on their stress levels during the surgery, which can be many hours long.



Janigro decided to play music for these patients after his own experience in a noisy operating room this year. While being prepped for spinal surgery, he thought of how dentists often give patients headphones to listen to music or a TV to watch to ease anxiety.



"The reason why they do it -- I asked my dentist -- is because [the procedure is] easier, and you go home faster," Janigro said.



Janigro presented his findings Oct. 30 at the Music and the Brain symposium in New York. Janigro is one of many specialists who work in the Clinic's Arts and Medicine Institute, which is studying how the arts can be used to enhance healing.



Dirk Hoch, 52, of Delphi, Ind., agreed to participate in the music study without hesitation. Hoch is a former postal worker who had to retire in 2005 due to essential tremor, a neurological condition that causes involuntary shaking, particularly evident during voluntary movements like holding a fork.



During the April surgery, Hoch listened to different music clips and told Janigro how he felt.



Like all the other participants, about a dozen in this initial study, Hoch preferred the melodic music clips to the others. Janigro also offered purely rhythmic music and a clip that combined rhythmic and melodic music.



To eliminate the possibility of any emotional associations with the music related to memory, Janigro had Gregory Bonanno of the Cleveland Institute of Music compose the clips.



Hoch said the music was a welcome distraction from the pain of the halo-like metal clamp that held his head in place during the surgery.



"You were at ease and at peace with the surroundings, which, given the circumstances, is something," he said. "I mean, after all, they're drilling holes in your head and inserting electrodes. It just really made a huge difference."



Janigro and his team could see that difference at work in Hoch's brain.



When he and the other patients listened to the rhythmic music or the clip that was both rhythmic and melodic, the overactive firing in their subthalamic and thalamic neurons didn't change. These are the areas of the brain that control the surface cortex and are particularly important in movement.



During the melodic music clips, the firing in these areas slowed down, and Hoch and the other patients felt calmer.



It wasn't exactly what Janigro expected.



"It's strange because these are motor sensors, so you would expect that boom, boom, boom would have more of an effect -- the rhythmic music."



The next step for Janigro and his colleagues will be to find out if melodic music in the operating room has any effect on stress measures, like the amount of the stress hormone cortisol circulating in the blood or the amount of blood-pressure medication needed during the procedure.



Ultimately, Janigro hopes the musical intervention will mean patients heal faster.



"I bet you that they will go home sooner," he said. "That's the goal, really. Happy people don't stay in the hospital."

Music during Surgery: What the experts say

“We trust that the magic of sound, scientifically applied, will contribute in ever greater measure to the relief of human suffering, to a higher development and a richer integration of the human personality, to the harmonious synthesis of all human “notes” of all “group chords and melodies” – until there will be the greater symphony of the One Humanity.”


Roberto Assagioli M.D.
 
 

Music can be employed as assistance in obtaining physical, emotional and spiritual health. During the first half of the nineties, I investigated the therapeutic consequences of distinct types of music on patients under adequate anaesthesia. This investigation was done in Johannesburg at the Garden City Clinic, over a period of four years (1991-1995), with statistics done at the Witwatersrand university, by dr. Jackie Galpin.





Data available on investigations done to test the therapeutic benefits of music, would fill a library of its own. That was not what was done. The effect of music with a known therapeutic value, was investigated on patients under adequate anaesthesia – testing for reduction in pain levels and a shorter recovery period. It is an accepted dictum in psychology that people in a deep sleep, coma or under anaesthesia can hear (not remember). That the auditory pathways up to the auditory cortex actually remain open and untouched by anaesthesia. That you can talk to people in a coma or undergoing surgery, and that the body would respond to whatever was said. In many hospitals, positive suggestions are given to patients in a coma and on the operating table. The capital aim of the project was to test music to serve as a credible alternative for the positive verbal suggestions.





Music has powerful effects on people, whether they are educated in music or not. Wertheim (1961) states that “muscle perception and performance is an inborn capacity of the human brain. This ability is common among human beings and is independent of education or culture…..” This makes the application of music as a therapy, or music as an aid to any other therapy, very simple.





Science, Medicine and Anthropology have completed many years of investigation on the effect of music on the physical body. As early as 1830, articles were published by J. Dogiel, which outlined experiments done to affirm music’s dynamic effect on the body. Absolute physiological reactions were established, and amongst other things, it was proved that music act on the circulation of blood, and can cause blood pressure to rise and fall. According to this, these alternations of pressure rely mainly on the influence which auditory stimulation has on the medulla oblongata and the auditory nerve.





During the first half of the previous century, many investigators throughout Europe agreed that music increases metabolism in a very adequate way, and that it changes muscular energy and enhances respiration.



The positive effects of music on physical and psychological health are truly widespread. In an article on music as cause of disease and healing agent, Assagioli (1965) states that “through its influence upon the subconscious, music can have a still more definite and specific healing effect of a psychoanalytic character. If of an appropriate kind, it can help in eliminating repression and resistance and bring into the field of waking consciousness many drives, emotions and complexes which were creating difficulties in the subconscious”.



It is known that certain kinds of music have the ability to reduce pain, whether it is physical or emotional. Scarantino (1987) states that “Pythagoras of Samos taught his students that certain musical sequences, chords and melodies produced definite responses in the human organism, and could change behaviour patterns that accelerated healing processes”



In a further discussion Scarantino states “In the 1970’s, Bulgarian researchers, under the direction of Dr. Georgi Lazanov, discovered a holistic approach to learning, that allows the body and mind to work in harmony through the linking of music and verbal suggestions…. While listening to largo movements from works of Baroque era composers, with tempos slower than the average heartbeat (sixty beats per minute or slower), the vital signs of test subjects slows down in rhythm with the music, relaxing them physically but leaving their minds alert for the assimilation of information. When the various educational data was presented to the students while the music played in the background, the students experienced significant increases in awareness and retention of information and a whole repertoire of health benefits, including relief from pain and headaches…..”

Pediatric Anesthesia: New Research Results

Very interesting study done using music with pediatric surgery patients. School-aged children's experiences of postoperative music medicine on pain, distress, and anxiety STEFAN NILSSON RN, MSC*†, EVA KOKINSKY MD, PhD*, ULRICA NILSSON RNA, PhD‡, BIRGITTA SIDENVALL RN, PhD† AND KARIN ENSKÄR RN, PhD† *Department of Paediatric Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Unit, The Queen Silvia Children's Hospital, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Göteborg , †Department of Nursing Science, School of Health Sciences, Jönköping University, Jönköping and ‡Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care and Centre for Health Care Sciences, Örebro University Hospital, Örebro, Sweden Correspondence to Stefan Nilsson, Department of Paediatric Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Unit, The Queen Silvia Children's Hospital, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, 416 85 Göteborg, Sweden (email: stefan.r.nilsson@vgregion.se). ABSTRACT Aim: To test whether postoperative music listening reduces morphine consumption and influence pain, distress, and anxiety after day surgery and to describe the experience of postoperative music listening in school-aged children who had undergone day surgery. Background: Music medicine has been proposed to reduce distress, anxiety, and pain. There has been no other study that evaluates effects of music medicine (MusiCure®) in children after minor surgery. Methods: Numbers of participants who required analgesics, individual doses, objective pain scores (Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability [FLACC]), vital signs, and administration of anti-emetics were documented during postoperative recovery stay. Self-reported pain (Coloured Analogue Scale [CAS]), distress (Facial Affective Scale [FAS]), and anxiety (short State-Trait Anxiety Inventory [STAI]) were recorded before and after surgery. In conjunction with the completed intervention semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted. Results: Data were recorded from 80 children aged 7–16. Forty participants were randomized to music medicine and another 40 participants to a control group. We found evidence that children in the music group received less morphine in the postoperative care unit, 1/40 compared to 9/40 in the control group. Children's individual FAS scores were reduced but no other significant differences between the two groups concerning FAS, CAS, FLACC, short STAI, and vital signs were shown. Children experienced the music as 'calming and relaxing.' Conclusions: Music medicine reduced the requirement of morphine and decreased the distress after minor surgery but did not else influence the postoperative care.

Music Before Surgery Proven Effective

Yet another medical research study has come out documenting that listening to calm, relaxing music before surgery can calm the patient better than powerful midazolam. Time to order those pre-surgery headphones: www.surgicalheadphones.com. Introduction: Patients who await surgery often suffer from fear and anxiety, which can be prevented by anxiolytic drugs. Relaxing music may be an alternative treatment with fewer adverse effects. This randomised clinical trial compared pre-operative midazolam with relaxing music. Method: Three hundred and seventy-two patients scheduled for elective surgery were randomised to receive pre-operative prevention of anxiety by 0.05–0.1 mg/kg of midazolam orally or by relaxing music. The main outcome measure was the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI X-1), which was completed by the patients just before and after the intervention. Results: Of the 177 patients who completed the music protocol, the mean and (standard deviation) STAI-state anxiety scores were 34 (8) before and 30 (7) after the intervention. The corresponding scores for the 150 patients in the midazolam group were 36 (8) before and 34 (7) after the intervention. The decline in the STAI-state anxiety score was significantly greater in the music group compared with the midazolam group (P<0.001, 95% confidence interval range −3.8 to −1.8). Conclusion: Relaxing music decreases the level of anxiety in a pre-operative setting to a greater extent than orally administrated midazolam. Higher effectiveness and absence of apparent adverse effects makes pre-operative relaxing music a useful alternative to midazolam for pre-medication. Relaxing music as pre-medication before surgery: a randomised controlled trial H. BRINGMAN 1 , K. GIESECKE 2,3 , A. THÖRNE 1,3 and S. BRINGMAN 1,3 1 Department of Surgery, 2 Department of Anaesthesia, Södertälje Hospital, SE-152 86 Södertälje, Sweden and 3 Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, SE-141 86 Stockholm, Sweden Correspondence to Address: Sven Bringman Department of Surgery Södertälje Hospital SE-152 86 Södertälje Sweden e-mail: sven.bringman@ki.se This paper was presented as an oral presentation at the Swedish Surgical Week, Umeå, August 2008.

Can the surgical patient hear under anesthesia?

One of the most frequent questions I get is "can a surgical patient really hear when they are under general anesthesia?" The answer is an unequivocal "yes." Patients awaken from surgery every day reporting that they remember conversations that they heard under anesthesia and they frequently report that they heard O.R. sounds related to drilling, hammering and sawing. The actions take place during joint replacements and other such surgeries. One of the benefits of having soothing music through headphones during surgery is that they block these kinds of noises out, in addition to entraining the heartbeat and breathing with surgery, thus necessitating less anesthesia. If you or someone you now is having surgery, you must go to www.surgicalserenity.com and order the surgical serenity headphones. Call or email me with any questions!

More Info on dangers of Propofol: use ONLY as directed

LAS VEGAS—Michael Jackson's doctor bought a powerful anesthetic in Nevada and had it shipped to California, where it was found at the pop singer's bedside after he died, court documents released Friday show. Search warrant records released despite objections by Los Angeles police revealed that investigators found receipts in Dr. Conrad Murray's Las Vegas medical office showing he purchased the sedative propofol from Applied Pharmacy Services on May 12. The Los Angeles County coroner blamed propofol in ruling that the 50-year-old pop music icon's June 25 death was a homicide. The coroner also cited the sedative lorazepam. Murray, 56, a cardiologist licensed in Nevada, California and Texas, told police he used propofol along with other sedatives to help Jackson sleep. Propofol is usually used in medical settings by anesthesia professionals to render patients unconscious for surgery. Officials say it is not meant for use as a sleep agent. However, the milky liquid drug is not regulated by state and federal authorities as a controlled substance. Drug Enforcement Administration spokeswoman Sarah Pullen in Los Angeles said a doctor who is licensed in two states can buy propofol in one state and administer it in the other. Murray is the focus of a Los Angeles police homicide investigation, but has not been charged with a crime. Records show he obtained the propofol about the same time he was hired in May to accompany Jackson on a world tour. He told police he administered 50 milligrams of the drug intravenously per night to help Jackson sleep, but was trying to use less. In the warrant documents, investigators said Murray told them he gave propofol to Jackson in the hours before he died in a rented Los Angeles mansion. Through a spokeswoman, Murray maintains that he didn't prescribe or administer anything to Jackson that should have killed him. Murray's attorney, Edward Chernoff, issued a statement Friday saying he found no surprises in the newly released affidavit. "The fact that Dr. Murray ordered five bottles of propofol is consistent with what he told investigators," Chernoff said. The affidavit showed that authorities tracing the manufacturing lot numbers of propofol bottles found in Murray's medical bag and on Jackson's bedside table learned that Murray bought five, 100-milliliter bottles of the drug from the Las Vegas pharmacy as part of an order costing $853. He paid $65 extra to have it sent to him by overnight express, the document states. Authorities said the amount of the drug purchased did not appear improper, the fact that it was moved across state lines from Nevada to California was not illegal, and because propofol is not a controlled substance it would not be tracked. A veteran DEA investigator in Las Vegas, Jayne Tomko Griffin, said the five bottles of propofol could have provided 100 doses of 50 milligrams each. Los Angeles police fought to keep records of the Aug. 11 search sealed. A detective argued that releasing the documents before Jan. 18 would jeopardize the investigation. Attorneys representing The Associated Press, Los Angeles Times, TMZ Productions Inc. of Los Angeles and Stephens Media LLC, the parent company of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, argued there was no reason for the documents to remain secret. Clark County District Judge Valerie Adair decided Thursday to unseal the records. Her order was signed Friday.

Surgery with music now recommended at Mayo Clinic

The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN is one of the most highly esteemed medical facilities in the world. Imagine how thrilled I was to find that they strong recommend the use of healing music for patients having open heart surgery. Here is what they said: Patients scheduled for heart surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester will receive a brochure on the Healing Enhancement Program when they are admitted to the hospital. The brochure lists the healing enhancement therapies that are available. Patients and their family members are encouraged to discuss these complementary therapies with their cardiac medical team to determine which therapies may provide benefits during which treatment segments: prior to, during, or after patients' surgical procedures. Patients and families can select the therapies and coordinate with designated nurses to schedule the services. Therapy options include: •Massage •Music therapy •Relaxation therapies •Prayer What they suggest specifically for music is: Music Music therapy is a widely accepted and easily accessible method to promote relaxation and reduce tension, stress and anxiety. Because listening to music helps patients relax and feel less tense, it helps decrease pain, improve patients' moods and promote better sleep. Research on the effectiveness of music therapy dates back to the 1920s, when a study reported individuals' blood pressure dropped when listening to music. Currently, our program is conducting a research study to measure the effects of music therapy on pain, anxiety and tension. As part of the Cardiovascular Surgery Healing Enhancement Program, rooms for cardiac surgery patients have music systems. A selection of CD music is available at each cardiac surgical unit. We encourage patients to bring their own preferred music. Selections on hand include easy listening, relaxation, classical, country, and instrumental. Contemporary music with sounds of nature, such as birds chirping and water flowing, is also available. Music systems include AM/FM radios. Needless to say, I will be contacting them THIS WEEK about my wireless/cordless pre-loaded headphones for surgery!

Music in the PACU: New Study from Sweden

Music in the Post-anesthesia care unit? New study documents benefits! Intensive Crit Care Nurs. 2009 Aug;25(4):208-13. Epub 2009 May 14. Patients' perception of music versus ordinary sound in a postanaesthesia care unit: a randomised crossover trial. Fredriksson AC, Hellström L, Nilsson U. Dep. Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Malmoe University Hospital, Sweden. We performed an experimental single-blind crossover design study in a postanaesthesia care unit (PACU): (i) to test the hypothesis that patients will experience a higher degree of wellbeing if they listen to music compared to ordinary PACU sounds during their early postoperative care, (ii) to determine if there is a difference over time, and (iii) to evaluate the importance of the acoustic environment and whether patients prefer listening to music during their stay. Two groups received a three-phase intervention: one group (n=23) experienced music-ordinary sound-music and the second group (n=21) experienced ordinary sound-music-ordinary sound. Each period lasted 30 min, and after each period the patients assessed their experience of the sound. The results demonstrated a significant difference (p<0.001) between groups in the proportions of patients reporting that the acoustic environment was of great importance for their wellbeing during the three-phase intervention, and most participants (n=36 versus n=8) noticed that they were exposed to different sounds during the PACU period. The results also revealed that most participants (n=32) preferred listening to music versus listening to ordinary sound (n=3) while in the PACU (p<0.001). These findings promote use of listening to music to establish a healing environment for patients in a postanaesthesia care unit

New Research Study on Music Medicine with Children

Paediatr Anaesth. 2009 Oct 23. [Epub ahead of print] School-aged children's experiences of postoperative music medicine on pain, distress, and anxiety. Nilsson S, Kokinsky E, Nilsson U, Sidenvall B, Enskär K. Department of Paediatric Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Unit, The Queen Silvia Children's Hospital, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Göteborg. Aim: To test whether postoperative music listening reduces morphine consumption and influence pain, distress, and anxiety after day surgery and to describe the experience of postoperative music listening in school-aged children who had undergone day surgery. Background: Music medicine has been proposed to reduce distress, anxiety, and pain. There has been no other study that evaluates effects of music medicine (MusiCure((R))) in children after minor surgery. Methods: Numbers of participants who required analgesics, individual doses, objective pain scores (Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability [FLACC]), vital signs, and administration of anti-emetics were documented during postoperative recovery stay. Self-reported pain (Coloured Analogue Scale [CAS]), distress (Facial Affective Scale [FAS]), and anxiety (short State-Trait Anxiety Inventory [STAI]) were recorded before and after surgery. In conjunction with the completed intervention semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted. Results: Data were recorded from 80 children aged 7-16. Forty participants were randomized to music medicine and another 40 participants to a control group. We found evidence that children in the music group received less morphine in the postoperative care unit, 1/40 compared to 9/40 in the control group. Children's individual FAS scores were reduced but no other significant differences between the two groups concerning FAS, CAS, FLACC, short STAI, and vital signs were shown. Children experienced the music as 'calming and relaxing.' Conclusions: Music medicine reduced the requirement of morphine and decreased the distress after minor surgery but did not else influence the postoperative care.

Surgery Headphones or Surgery Music Download

Since I created my headphones for surgery last year, I also decided to offer just the download of the music as well. Lately, more people are choosing to download the music to put on their own MP3 players. Obviously I think this is a wonderful idea, better than having no music or taking in music that could actually energize the body and require more anesthesia to relax the body and keep it asleep. The ideal solution though is the surgery music headphones. This is because you can have the music delivered directly to the brain, through the 8th cranial nerve, and you can avoid all wires and cords. Any MP3 player in the world today has two wires that lead from the player to the headphones or earbuds. My headphones have NO wires or cords and deliver the music from a programmed chip in the headphone itself, powered by a lithium battery. In the past year, NO ONE has been prevented from taking the headphones into surgery! As a matter of fact, patients report that the doctors and nurses are fascinated by the headphones and music and eager to see them work! If you or anyone you know is having surgery, go immediately to www.surgicalheadphones.com and check these out. Thanks!

I've Come Full Circle!

Last night I had a once in a lifetime experience. The dear man who has been my mentor in the field of music medicine for twenty years now, was in the hospital recovering from an emergency appendectomy, and I was able to deliver him a set of my surgery headphones to use during his recovery! If it were not for Dr. Arthur Harvey, these headphones would not exist and now, he got to benefit from them! Dr. Harvey reported that the quality of music was "amazing" and as I stood there talking with his son, Dr. Harvey was smiling and singing along with the favorite hymns I had put on just for him! Needless to say I am thrilled to be able to help the man who is responsible for my being where I am in this wonderful profession and am trusting that he will continue to recover and maybe do so faster and with less pain, thanks to the music he tadught me about long ago!

Rave Reviews come in of my Surgery Headphones

Well I had a wonderful experience tonight at a banquet I attended. I was not expecting to know many of the people who were there, but to my delight, there was a woman MD who bought my headphones a few months ago for her knee replacement surgery! I had not heard from her and although I try to follow up with all my customers, had not gotten back to her. During the break before the speaker she saw me and came over to me with a BIG smile on her face. She said the the headphones did great and she was so thrilled the the doctors and nurses not only allowed her to wear them all the way through her surgery, but that they were quite excited and intrigued but the whole idea and said they had been reading about them! Needless to say, i was thrilled! Who's next??!!

Music during Surgery: A video report

This music was planned and played by my friend and mentor, Dr. Arthur Harvey. Since this was created, Dr. Harvey has moved from Honolulu to the Sarasota area. I will be in Sarasota from Oct. 22-26 and available to consult with folks about music during surgery. Let me know if you live in the area and would like to meet. More info to come! Stay tuned!

How does entrainment work?

Entrainment is the main reason why music during surgery works! In the process of entrainment, your bodies natural rhythms such as heart-rate and breathing, automatically synchronize with the pulse of music. In an everyday example, when you hear strongly rhythmic music such as high-energy disco music, rock-and-roll, or a Sousa march, you automatically start tapping your toe, bobbing your head or actually dancing! Research in music therapy has proven time and again that the body responds to music even when in a coma state or asleep. When you are under general anesthesia, you can still be tense, anxious and require the maximum safe dose of anesthesia. When you have slow, steady, soothing music coming into your brain through headphones, your body automatically relaxes and entrains with that music, thus allowing you to take the MINIMUM safe amount of anesthesia. My "Surgical Serenity Headphones" have only been on the market for 5 months, but already word is spreading and they are selling every day. If you are interested in using these for your surgery, but feel that you can't afford them, contact me and I will work something out with you! To read more about them click here.

Now anyone can have music during surgery!

Research has proven beyond any doubt that music during surgery is a powerful adjunct. As my pre-programmed, cordless headphones hit the market, research studies in hospitals and clinics from around the world pour into medical journals about the benefits of music to the patient, during surgery! Surgeons have been using their own iPods and CDs during surgeries for a couple of decades, but the majority of people did not realize that the patient's body was responding to the music too and that patient needed a very different type of music! As a musicologist with clinical/hospital training I have chosen the perfect music for YOUR surgery. Get them now and be prepared! Send my surgical headphones now.

More on Propofol

Well, it looks like Michael Jackson's personal 24/7 physician is the person who gave him the propofol that killed him.  There has been so much in the media that I don't want to belabor this but needless to say, this man is in big trouble and will probably do prison time, not to mention never practicing medicine again!

So sad.  What do we do to our entertainers that makes them feel that they are so different that the rules for other humans just don't apply to them?  Really tragic!

Why Propofol should only be in the hospital

Anesthesia in Jackson Case Tracked Posted Jul 14th 2009 6:35PM by TMZ Staff We've learned several pharmaceutical companies have been contacted by the DEA in the Michael Jackson case and we're told authorities are getting closer to identifying which person may have supplied the powerful anesthesia Propofol that appears to have killed the singer. Sources tell us law enforcement found vials of Propofol in Michael Jackson's house after he died. The vials all have lot numbers. We're told several days ago the DEA contacted Teva Pharmaceuticals -- which manufactured one of the vials found at the house -- to determine who purchased it. Teva sells Propofol to medical distributors, who then turn around and sell the vials to hospitals and doctors. And, law enforcement sources say, the DEA also contacted other manufacturers of Propofol from the other vials found in Jackson's home. Here's the problem. Although every vial has a lot number, the vials are not marked individually. There are thousands of vials in a lot. So the DEA and LAPD are trying to hone in on the culprit but, we're told, it's no easy task.

Surgery with music lectures for your organization

The word about music during surgery is getting out! I did a lecture this past Friday night at a large Presbyterian Church here in Louisville and then appeared on a widely-broadcast radio show here earlier this evening! Once people begin to understand what a huge benefit music during surgery is, the more they not only use it themselves for any medical procedure but the more they begin to tell their friends, family, and physicians. My goal is to have the wireless, pre-programmed headphones in every hospital, every doctor's office and in many homes as well. If you want to know more, go now to www.surgicalheadphones.com. As always, send me your questions, your comments, and your stories of music's healing power.

A little humor regarding effects of surgery!

This blog is a serious blog. My intent is to impart as much scientifically grounded information to you as possible regarding the use of music with surgery and other medical situations. But every now and then something really funny comes along:

"LOS ANGELES—Leave it to Robin Williams, who is recovering from his heart surgery last March, to liven up the proceedings at the recent premiere of “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian” in Washington, DC."

Hope you're staying cool and comfortable wherever you are!

How does anesthesia work?

Many inventions of the 19th century -- telephones, airplanes, phonographs -- have helped to shape the modern world. However, it could be argued that the 1846 discovery of effective surgical anesthesia holds a place of honor among the century's advances. Music for Surgery Headphones now available! Use Less Anesthesia by adding music Prior to the advent of effective anesthetics, surgery was a desperate last resort that used crude and dangerous means (including large doses of opium or alcohol, or knocking a patient unconscious) to dull the patient's sensations. Today, whether it is a shot of novocaine at the dentist, a spinal or epidural during childbirth, deep sedation for a minor procedure or general anesthesia for major surgery, the use of effective anesthesia is a routine part of medical care. Although most of us have experienced anesthesia, the general public has little understanding of what it is and how it works. According to Steve Kimatian, associate professor of anesthesiology and pediatrics in Penn State's College of Medicine, anesthesia is not a single entity, but rather a manipulation of several physiological functions of the body. "In its most basic sense, you can say that anesthesia consists of four components: hypnosis, amnesia, analgesia and muscle relaxation," explained Kimatian. These components -- which range from local anesthetic injections to regional anesthetics (such as spinal and epidural) to general anesthesia -- may be combined or used separately depending on the type of surgery and patients' needs. While you may have thought you were "asleep" for that tonsillectomy as a teenager, technically you were in a state of deep hypnosis. When you finally woke up in the recovery room, you probably didn't remember anything about the surgery -- thanks to the effects of amnesia-inducing agents you were given. But Kimatian explains that sedation and amnesia do not necessarily mean the same thing. You can be "asleep" during a procedure but afterwards remember hearing the voices of the doctors or you can also be "awake" during a procedure, speaking with the doctors, answering questions and following commands, but remember nothing. Said Kimatian, although you don't remember having any pain during the surgery, that doesn't necessarily mean the pain wasn't there. "A person can be sedated and appear to be asleep, they can be amnesic and not remember anything, but their body can still have a physiological response to a stimulus. Consider the tree falling in the forest analogy. If you had pain and you don't remember it, did you really have pain? From an anesthesiologist's standpoint, yes, because we have to address those physiologic changes that occur with response to stimulus." In cases requiring regional anesthesia, how do anesthesiologists block sensation to specific body parts and not others? Explained Kimatian, if we touch a hot stove, thermal receptors in our hand send an electrical signal to our spinal cord which signals our brain, and we react by experiencing pain and removing our hand from the stimulus. To make sure we don't feel the pain during a surgery or procedure, an anesthesiologist uses analgesics or local anesthetics to block the signal somewhere between the point of the stimulus and the brain. "I could do a regional anesthetic selective to an individual finger, by just blocking the nerves of that digit, and you wouldn't know the finger was in pain," Kimatian said. "Or you can block all the nerves to the forearm so you wouldn't feel the pain there. You could block it at the shoulder. You could block it at the epidural space where the nerves enter into the spinal sac, or you can put the person completely to sleep and block it at the cerebral level." The art and science of anesthesia, said Kimatian, is knowing how to tailor both the technique and the dosage to the individual patient's needs. "Understanding the delicate balance between desired effects and undesired side effects requires a physician's in-depth knowledge of physiology and pharmacology," he added. Source: by James Conroy, Research Penn State

Interesting history about anesthesia

There is so much in this world that we take for granted...we have to!  We can't be experts on everything and especially when it comes to the medical world, we must trust that our doctors know what they're talking about.  However, doctors are human, like everyone else, and they do make mistakes.  We must decide for ourselves how much information we want to get about any particular procedure or test.

In line with this, I thought my readers might be interested to know a little more about the history of anesthesia.  Enjoy!

The date of the first operation under anesthetic, Oct. 16, 1846, ranks among the most iconic in the history of medicine. It was the moment when Boston, and indeed the United States, first emerged as a world-class center of medical innovation. The room at the heart of Massachusetts General Hospital where the operation took place has been known ever since as the Ether Dome, and the word "anesthesia" itself was coined by the Boston physician and poet Oliver Wendell Holmes to denote the strange new state of suspended consciousness that the city's physicians had witnessed. The news from Boston swept around the world, and it was recognized within weeks as a moment that had changed medicine forever.But what precisely was invented that day? Not a chemical - the mysterious substance used by William Morton, the local dentist who performed the procedure, turned out to be simply ether, a volatile solvent that had been in common use for decades. And not the idea of anesthesia - ether, and the anesthetic gas nitrous oxide, had both been thoroughly inhaled and explored. As far back as 1525, the Renaissance physician Paracelsus had recorded that it made chickens "fall asleep, but wake up again after some time without any bad effect," and that it "extinguishes pain" for the duration.  What the great moment in the Ether Dome really marked was something less tangible but far more significant: a huge cultural shift in the idea of pain. Operating under anesthetic would transform medicine, dramatically expanding the scope of what doctors were able to accomplish. What needed to change first wasn't the technology - that was long since established - but medicine's readiness to use it.

How does this apply to the acceptance of music during surgery?  I'll let you draw the parallels because I think it is fairly self-evident.  Music has been used in medical settings for centuries.  Evidence of this can be found easily by simply Googling "history of music in medicine."  Music is one of the most ancient and powerful of medical/healing interventions.  But those of us who believe this fervently must get the word out to our doctors and have proof in hand.  My blogs and my websites are filled with the facts and the documentation you need.  If you want more, just email me through the blog or through my website, www.HealingMusicEnterprises.com.

Understanding the Power of Entrainment

One of the most frequent questions that I get about my music with surgery process and headphones is "how do you know this works?" That's a great questions and very important to understand that this is not just a hunch I have!

When I began studying music therapy back in 1990 with Laurie Rugenstein, one of the first things I learned about was the power of musical entrainment. To make it as simple as possible " when people hear rhythmic music being played, they automatically begin to tap a toe, tap a finger, nod their head, or sometimes, get up and dance!

Now what does this have to do with surgery? Well, music therapy and medical research (http://www.pubmed.com/) databases are filled with scientific, empirical studies documenting that when rhythmic music is played for patients, their heartrate and breathing tend to synchronize with that music, often lowering blood pressure, lowering heart rate, stabilizing body temperature and all biorhythms.

Many of these studies played the music through headphones which not only delivers the music directly to the brain through the 8th cranial nerve, but also drowns out OR conversations, and sounds that the patient might not want to hear like drilling, sawing, and breaking bones!

The headphones that I have created are wireless, cordless, and completely re-chargeable. They hold 7-8 hours of specially-selected music for surgery or can be programmed with the music you choose!

Learn more about surgical headphones

What is the advantage of using "musical anesthesia?"

What exactly is "Musical Anesthesia?"  This is my patented procedure for using music during surgery (or other medical procedures) wherein the patient has specially created wireless headphones that deliver specially chosen music during surgery for the express purpose of reducing (sometimes dramatically) the amount of anesthesia required during the procedure.

Why would someone want to reduce the amount of anesthesia they require during surgery? Anesthesia-related complications range from headache to death.  Although people do not die very often from anesthesia, it does happen every year because of previously unknown allergies, anesthesia-related heart attacks, and other unforseen events that result in death.

If you knew that you could supplement the usual anesthesia with music in order to create a safe experience, wouldn't you want to do that?  I have created a patented a process to deliver that perfect music for surgery through wireless headphones.

 If you want to know more about this, please click HERE.  Thank you!

How soon should you talk with doctor?

If you have just been told that you are going to need surgery, there probably is a 50/50 chance that you knew this already.  But if it comes as a total surprise, you may be a bit numb at first and feel confused and even panicky.  No one wants to have surgery.  Even people who choose elective surgery, like plastic surgery, would prefer to have someone give them a pill or better yet, wave a magic wand!!

So, now you know you must have surgery.  You've heard that listening to music through headphones during surgery can greatly reduce the amount of anesthesia, pain medication and other meds by up to 50%!!  How soon do you mention this to your physician?

I wish there were an easy answer to this.  It could depend on how familiar your doctor is with this concept.

 Many surgeons today are quite familiar with people taking their own favorite relaxing music into the OR because there has been so much publicity about this phenomenon and the many ways that it can help during surgery.  Unfortunately, there are some surgeons that are not aware of these benefits and are not willing to even discuss it.

If you have just come across this blog or some of the many articles I have written on the subject at http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Dr._Alice_Cash, please feel free to email me through my site www.HealingMusicEnterprises.com or go to www.HealingMusicEnterprises.com/surgical_headphones.  

Even if it turns out that you're not allowed to use music during your surgery, you can still benefit from listening to music through headphones before the procedure, in the recovery room and after you return home.  Here's to your good health and your speedy recovery!

More info on the surgical headphones

Several people have asked me about the headphones...if they go over the head or behind the neck? The answer is "behind the neck." This is the newer way that headphones are being made today and we have had 100's of people try them lying down, walkikng around, leaning back in a comfortable chair or sitting up straight. So far, all of those positions are reported to be perfectly comfortable. I think it's important to know that, although the headphones come pre-programmed with the music that I have chosen as "ideal for surgery" once your procedure is over you can delete this music if you want to and put any music you want onto the headphones. They come with a USB cable and all instructions. But keep in mind, it's not about entertainment, it's about "entrainment" and synchronizing the heart-beat and breathing to the slow, steady pulse of the music! This 60-minute selection of music repeats in a loop until the headphones are turned off, hopefully when you leave the recovery area! Let me know what your other questions might be! Happy listening!

Do you want Headphones or MP3 Player for your surgery music?

Now that we've established what all the many benefits of music during are, what are the pros and cons of the pre-programmed headphones vs. the music that is downloadable to your MP3 player. For me, the most obvious benefit is that:

• the headphones are totally cordless and the MP3 player or iPod has wires that connect the earbuds to the player
• During surgery, or other medical procedure, you need to be able to move your head easily and many people report a problem with earbuds falling out.
• Although many people take iPods and MP3 players into surgery and do not report a problem, I think the cordless, pre-programmed headphones are safer and less likely to become entangled with anything the surgeon or nurses might be doing for you.
• Another advantage is that you don't have to worry about where to put the MP3 player. Although surgical gowns often have a small pocket, it's not really intended to keep an object in it and could easily slide out.

Of course either one is preferable to no music for your procedure. What's the downside? Absolutely nothing! Let me know if I can help you!

Headphones orders are coming in

I am so excited because people are ordering both the headphones and the downloads of the surgery music I've worked so long to choose and program. Soon I'm hoping to have at least 4 different genres of music to choose from but right now it's classical music. But, keep in mind, that you'll be asleep during your surgery and your body will be kept relaxed through the process of entrainment. You will hear the music while you're waiting to be taken back and you'll be aware of it in the recovery area, but it's not about entertainment; it's about entrainment! Please feel free to send me all your questions. After a few months of sales and questions I'll put together an eBook with the most frequently asked questions and concerns. If you're having surgery anytime soon, it's best to order them NOW! If I do get backlogged, you can order the download for $79.97 and load it on to your own iPod or MP3 player. Thousands are taking iPods into surgery now but they're not wireless/cordless like my headphones! To your good health! Alice

Surgery Headphones are ready for YOU!

For almost 20 years I have been reading about, thinking about and finally creating headphones for patients to wear during surgery. The research is there: through the process of rhythmic entrainment, patients who are listening to steady, rhythmic music through headphones, stay relaxed and as a result, require less anesthesia, less anxiety meds before and less pain medication afterwards! This is BIG because one of the things you must recover from after surgery is the ANESTHESIA! The anesthesiologist monitors all of your vital signs during surgery and by watching things such as your blood pressure, heart rate and body temperature, determines how much anesthesia you need. (This is of course, a great over-simplification of what he does.) When slow, steady, heart-beat tempo music is entering your brain directly through the 8th cranial nerve (thanks to the headphones) your bio-rhythms will entrain or synchronize to the pulse of the music, and you will stay relaxed as a result.

Most people are pretty tense and anxious when they go into surgery and need a little more anesthesia (or an anti-anxiety drug such as valium or other benzodiazepines) just to begin to relax their muscles. If the headphones are put on at least 30 minutes prior to surgery, less anesthesia will be needed in order for the patient to "go to sleep." When headphones are used throughout the surgery and into the recovery area, less anesthesia and less pain medication will be needed for the entire procedure!

These facts have been known in the field of music therapy for years, but until now no one had created wireless, totally self-contained, preprogrammed headphones just for surgery! Now that they exist, I hope that you will help me create safer surgical experiences for your family and friends but spreading the word! click HERE to purchase your headphones, or, if you wish, you can purchase a download of my specially chosen surgical music to put on your own iPod or MP3 player. Of course, the MP3 players are not cordless but still you can have the music.

Please feel free to leave your comments! To your good health!

Benefits of Less Anesthesia

As I talk to people about the benefits of music during surgery, invariably I get the question, "But Alice, why would you want less anesthesia during surgery...I want MORE anesthesia!" OK, I know what you're thinking: you don't want to risk feeling any pain or being "accidentally awake" though the doctors think you are asleep. Yes, there's been a lot in the news about that recently. Here are some of the many benefits of using less anestheisa:

• anesthesia can take up to 6 months to completely leave your system
• all bodily systems are brought to an almost complete halt by anesthesia, severe constipation being a common result of this
• anesthesia is fraught with adverse reactions in patients including allergy and just plain sever side-effects
• side-effects include prolonged nausea, dizziness, fuzzy thinking, rashes, double vision and depression
• the less anesthesia you have, the sooner you can leave the hospital, begin your healing journey and get on with your life!

If you could have beautiful music playing through headphones cordless, self-contained, lightweight headphones during your procedure and take less anesthesia without an increase in pain, wouldn't you do it?? Please let me know! Thank you!

People's Fears of Surgery and Anesthesia

Most people are concerned and somewhat frightened when they learn that they are going to need surgery to correct, repair or heal from a condition. Many people are actually terrified that they will not wake up after general anesthesia. Although the science of anesthesiology has come a long way in the past five decades, there are definitely risks!

Recently I read a very interesting thread on a music blog. It went like this:

Who's been under the knife? How does it feel waking up from the anesthesia? Do you feel groggy, disoriented, pain, numbness? Is it like waking up from a long sleep? Does the pain hit you like a 10 ton brick or does it gradually set in or do you have to keep taking pain killers?

The responses were fascinating: a combination of comforting and scaring the person further. To my delight, many of the readers seemed to be aware of the option of taking their iPod with their favorite music into surgery. If you're looking at surgery in the near future, please feel free to contact me so assistance in preparing your perfect music!

Preparing for plastic surgery with music

Nearly every day I read a new source online where people are recommending music either before, during or after surgery. Of course my recommendation is to have all three. Here's an excerpt from another blog recommending music: Written by Cathy Enns on February 5, 2009 - 3:26pm As a plastic surgery writer, I’ve had the chance to talk with dozens of women about their experiences. While sharing feelings of excitement, anxiety and more, many have offered advice for others about preparing for surgery. Let’s assume you’ve navigated the initial part of the process. You’re confident in your choice of plastic surgeon and surgical plan, and you have a date for the procedure. Now what? How can you help ensure smooth sailing? Obviously, it’s vital to have your medications ready. Fill all prescriptions your surgeon writes, even if you don’t think you’ll use them. If it turns out you need something you don’t have on hand, chances are good you won’t feel much like visiting the pharmacy. Think about other products that may make recovery easier. You may benefit from having certain creams or lotions at home. If you’re having facial plastic surgery, eye drops can soothe scratchy eyes. Another important task is to choose a friend or loved one to help you. Your surgeon will require that someone drive you home after surgery, especially if you have general anesthesia. You should also plan to have someone stay overnight to help you with medications and to be there in case of problems. The more invasive your procedure, the more you’ll want to have a loved one around to help for a few days. If you have children or pets to care for, it’s a relief to have someone else on the front lines. Remember that you’ll need plenty of rest and you’ll move a little more slowly at first. If you have breast or abdominal surgery, you won’t be able to lift much right away. Finally, prepare your home to welcome you back. Most women like to return to a clean house, so apply some elbow grease before surgery. Put clean sheets on the bed and have soft pillows and throws for extra comfort. Stock up on food that’s easy to prepare and easy on your system. Have books and magazines you look forward to reading on hand, and some music or maybe a book on tape to listen to. The first few days after surgery may be somewhat uncomfortable as your body adjusts and recovers, but preparing in advance can make all the difference. Turn your post-op period into a pleasant time of rest and relaxation.

Study: Music helps colonoscopy patients tune out test anxiety

While few people will rank a colonoscopy as a favorite medical procedure, one statistic argues clearly in its favor: a 90 percent cure rate in colon cancers caught at an early stage. Benjamin Krevsky, a professor of medicine at the School of Medicine and director of gastrointestinal endoscopy at Temple University Hospital, found that when patients undergoing a colonoscopy listened to music, they required less sedation. (Photo by Ryan S. Brandenberg / University Photography) Still, patients often approach the test with a mixture of dread and anxiety. Despite sedation, people fear discomfort, and often put off the appointment. To address this common problem, doctors have added an extra ingredient: music. A new study reveals that patients who plug into their favorite tunes during a colonoscopy procedure may be able to relax enough to require less sedation, without sacrificing comfort. Results of the double-blind study by doctors at Temple University in Philadelphia were presented at this year’s American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy national meeting. Their findings align with other research that has shown music reduces anxiety before surgical procedures. Such promising results have led several hospitals around the country to begin studies on how music affects health. In the colonoscopy study, researchers asked 44 female and 29 male subjects to either bring music from home or choose from a selection of available CDs. Before the procedure, ear buds were taped to all of the participants’ ears and volume set to be audible to only the patient. After the patient received his or her initial dose of medication, an investigator opened a randomized envelope to see if the music selections would be played. Following the colonoscopy, the attending doctor, fellow and nurse evaluated pain, anxiety and comfort levels for each patient. A non-participating medical provider conducted a second, later interview. Results revealed that those who listened to music required less sedation (3.8 mg of midazolam vs. 4.4 mg, and 87 mcg of fentanyl vs. 93 mcg) yet reported the same comfort levels as those receiving the higher amounts. The reductions, equal to about one less dose of medication, are considered clinically significant, according to Benjamin Krevsky, M.D., M.P.H., the lead author of the study, who is a professor of medicine at Temple University School of Medicine and director of gastrointestinal endoscopy at Temple University Hospital. “It’s true that many patients don’t like the procedure,” said Krevsky, “but many find that the preparation for the test is worse than the test itself.” Co-investigator Kevin Skole, M.D., who was a gastroenterology fellow at Temple, had the original idea for the study. Krevsky too was inspired when a dentist handed him ear buds to listen to music during a dental procedure. “Over all, colonoscopies are very, very safe,” Krevsky said. “And while the risks of sedatives are relatively small, in general, less medication is always better.” Krevsky also notes the decreased drug dose may translate into reduced healthcare costs. Most of the participants picked gospel tunes, but the type of music didn’t appear to make a difference. “Offering music makes sense,” Krevsky said. “It has no downside, it may prove beneficial, and patients appear to be satisfied with the procedure.” All of which may add up to less anxiety and more colonoscopies. By Ilene Raymond For Temple Health Sciences PR

Surgery With Music: Fears about Surgery and Anesthesia

Surgery With Music: Fears about Surgery and Anesthesia

Plastic Surgery and criminology?

This is a different kind of post, but I thought it was interesting and I would share it with you. Enjoy! Drug Kingpin who'd had Plastic Surgery nailed by computer voice recognition! In a story that brings to mind John Woo's "Face-off" which starred John Travola and Nic Cage as an FBI agent and drug dealer/terrorist who "switched faces" via plastic surgery comes this news off the wires. Ramirez Abadia, a leader of Colombia's biggest drug cartel who had his features deliberately altered by plastic surgery, was identified by Brazilian and American anti-drug agents using advanced voice recognition technology. A write up can be found here from the Washington Post. U.S. intelligence agencies have used voice recognition for decades, but the technology has become much more effective in recent years through improvements in software that rapidly analyzes vocal frequency patterns, said Jim Hunter, a partner in the Merlin Risks security firm in Sao Paulo. "The way you use your voice is as individual as fingerprints," Hunter explained. "If they have a sample of a known voice and they get an unknown sample of sufficient length, they then test the unknown against the known." The process is more complex than fingerprinting because peoples' voices are different when they speak normally, yell or whisper _ but the software breaks down different frequencies and uses statistical analysis to make matches Good plastic surgery should not be able to make you unrecognizable to family, friends, or intelligence agencies. How would you alter yourself to evade detection? Let's look at Mr. Ramirez to get some ideas. If you look at the difference between the "new & improved" drug dealer on the left with some old FBI stock photos on the right & you can see some rather obvious stigmata of plastic surgery. He apparently was once a handsome man who has been altered into a vaguely humanoid thing. It looks like he's had rhinoplasty - note the excessively narrowed upper part of the nose & I think you can see a red scar inside of the left nostril on the upper picture Face lift & neck liposuction - his face is kind of globally distorted. On the underside of the neck there appears to be a "dent" which can be from sutures or liposuction. He's also got a very prominent chin cleft which wasn't evident (to me) on the old blurry photos. blepharoplasty (eyelids) - he's got a rounded eye and clear ectorpion or "scleral show" (scar contracture which pulls the lid down and shows more of the 'white of the eye') on his left lower lid which a not infrequent complication of lower eyelid surgery facial implants - these are made from silastic (silicone rubber). I say this because his face has assumed all these weird geometries along the cheek, chin, and jawline. Facelifts and/or fat grafting can do this to some degree, but my money's on implants. Rob

Is there a colonoscopy in your future?

Considering that colonoscopies are the best way to catch colon cancer at its earliest stage, people still do whatever they can to put off this routine screening. While it is true that no one looks forward to a colonoscopy, perhaps a little music can help make the experience more pleasant. That's the indication of a new study, presented at the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy's national meeting, which shows that patients who listened to music during their routine colonoscopy required less sedation for the procedure. "Offering music makes sense," said Dr. Benjamin Krevsky, lead author of the study and professor of medicine at Temple University School of Medicine. "It has no downside, it may prove beneficial and patients appear to be satisfied with the procedure." For the study, Krevsky and colleagues invited 73 men and women to bring music from home or choose from a selection of CDs with the understanding they may be played during their colonoscopy. Ear buds were taped to the participants' ears before each procedure and the volume was adjusted so the music was only audible to the patient. Then, after the initial dose of a sedative commonly used during a colonoscopy, it was randomly determined if the music would be played during the procedure itself. Further doses of the sedative were given if necessary. After the procedure, each patient was asked about their discomfort and pain levels during the procedure and if they had any anxiety. From their data, the researchers determined that those who listened to music during the colonoscopy needed approximately one less dose of the sedative mediation, while still reporting about the same levels of comfort as those who did not listen to music. If music does indeed reduce the amount of sedation a patient needs for a colonoscopy, it could lead to reduced healthcare costs and greater satisfaction with the overall procedure. "Over all, colonoscopies are very, very safe." Krevsky said. "And while the risks of sedatives are relatively small, in general, less medication is better." The type of music the patients selected didn't seem to matter. Krevsky even suggests toting along your mp3 player to your next colonoscopy. Your favorite tunes may make the procedure a little easier to bear. Karen Barrow 11/20/2006

Why use music during surgery?

The concept of using music for pain relief is ancient. People have literally been doing this for thousands of years. The concept of using music during surgery is a little bit newer. For 30 years or more, surgeons have been taking their own music into surgery, but for some reason, no one thought that patients should have their own music. The belief was that the patient was "asleep" and wouldn't even hear it. What they did not understand was that the human body responds to music, even when asleep...not only the body, but also the mind and the spirit. Through the process of "entrainment" the body responds to rhythmic music by synchronizing the heartbeat and breathing to that tempo of speed of the music. The mind also responds to slow, steady, soothing music by relaxing the body. The effect: when the body is relaxed, it requires less anesthesia in order to stay "asleep." Less anesthesia means safer surgery, fewer side-effects and complications and a faster recovery! It's so simple. If you want to try this, click on the link HERE. Best wishes!

Randomized Controlled Trial Investigating the Effect of Music on the Virtual Reality Laparoscopic Learning Performance of Novice Surgeons - Abstract

Interesting study...I don't think the results are too surprising though, do you?

Friday, 09 January 2009 Department of Surgery, Triemli Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland Findings have shown that music affects cognitive performance, but little is known about its influence on surgical performance. The hypothesis of this randomized controlled trial was that arousing (activating) music has a beneficial effect on the surgical performance of novice surgeons in the setting of a laparoscopic virtual reality task. For this study, 45 junior surgeons with no previous laparoscopic experience were randomly assigned to three equal groups. Group 1 listened to activating music; group 2 listened to deactivating music; and group 3 had no music (control) while each participant solved a surgical task five times on a virtual laparoscopic simulator. The assessed global task score, the total task time, the instrument travel distances, and the surgeons' heart rate were assessed. All surgical performance parameters improved significantly with experience (task repetition). The global score showed a trend for a between-groups difference, suggesting that the group listening to activating music had the worst performance. This observation was supported by a significant between-groups difference for the first trial but not subsequent trials (activating music, 35 points; deactivating music, 66 points; no music, 91 points; p = 0.002). The global score (p = 0.056) and total task time (p = 0.065) showed a trend toward improvement when participants considered the music pleasant rather than unpleasant. Music in the operating theater may have a distracting effect on novice surgeons performing new tasks. Surgical trainers should consider categorically switching off music during teaching procedures. Written by: Miskovic D, Rosenthal R, Zingg U, Oertli D, Metzger U, Jancke L. Are you the author? Reference: Surg Endosc. 2008 Nov;22(11):2416-20 doi: 10.1007/s00464-008-0040-8 PubMed Abstract PMID: 18622551 UroToday.com Laparoscopic and Robotic Section