Correlation Between Music Therapist's and Stroke Patient's Engagement Levels and Patient's Fingers and Wrist Movement

Summary

Background: Fingers and wrist functional impairments are common among stroke patients. The patient's engagement, their therapist's engagement, and the patient-therapist interaction during therapy, contribute significantly towards better outcomes in rehabilitation. Music therapeutic interaction between patient and music therapist, which involves active music-making, can enhance a stroke patient's engagement and improve fingers and wrist movement of the affected hand.

Study Objectives: 1. To assess the correlation between the therapist engagement's levels, patient engagement's levels, and patient's fingers and wrist movement. 2. To examine how the levels of patient and therapist engagement differ during music therapeutic interaction when compared with verbal interaction. 3. To determine if the changes to patients' fingers and wrist movement differ during a music therapeutic Interaction session when compared with a verbal interaction session.

Methods: This feasibility pilot study will include 10 patients, with right-sided hemiparesis who will be recruited 1-6 months following stroke. Each subject will participate in 2 sessions: verbal interaction session and music interactions session conducted both by the same qualified music therapist. For both sessions, each participant will be asked to perform three musical exercises with their right hand on an electric piano. During the Verbal Interaction session, participants will perform exercises alone, while the therapist only interacts with them verbally. During the second session, the Music Therapeutic Interaction session, participants will perform musical exercises while the therapist is interacting with them musically, using music therapy techniques. Measurement tools will include an EEG marker - the Cognitive Effort Index (CEI), for real-time measurement of the patient's and therapist's level of engagement; the HandTutorTM for evaluating real-time changes in a patient's fingers and wrist movement; and video recordings of the patient's hands while performing the musical exercises.

Conditions

• Hemiparesis;Poststroke/CVA

Interventions

OTHER

Music Therapeutic Interaction and Verbal Interaction

In both sessions (the Verbal Interaction and the Music Therapeutic Interaction) participants will be asked to perform three piano playing exercises in a fixed order: (1) playing a musical scale, (2) playing a short excerpt from a familiar song, and (3) free improvisation. Both sessions will also include a protocol of verbal instructions given by the therapist before each exercise. In session A ('Verbal Interaction') participants will perform these exercises alone while the therapist is only interacting with them verbally (asking them questions, commenting regarding their performance etc.). In session B ('Music Therapeutic Interaction') participants will perform these exercises while the therapist is interacting with them musically, using various music therapy techniques that are matched and attuned to each patient's playing dynamics and style. This is to reflect the dynamics of the music therapeutic interaction as it occurs in the "real world" of music therapy practice.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Haifa

  collaborator OTHER

• Reuth Rehabilitation Hospital

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Avi Ohry, M.D · Reuth Rehabilitation Hospital, Tel-Aviv, Israel

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

55 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2021-07-15

Primary Completion

2022-01-09

Completion

2022-01-09

Countries

• Israel

Study Locations