Music Interventions for the Facilitation of Sleep in the Acute Geriatric Setting

Summary

Sleep disturbance is a common problem experienced by older patients, especially in the acute care setting, and has detrimental effects on patients' health and recovery. There is a keen focus on non-pharmacological interventions because of the high risk of side effects related to pharmacotherapy. Music is safe and cost-effective, and there is a growing body of evidence for its potential health benefits.

The purpose of our study is to examine the impact of music listening interventions on the facilitation of sleep for patients admitted to the geriatric assessment unit (GAU).

The investigators predict that a musical listening exercise will more effectively contribute to the facilitation of sleep compared to non-musical sounds and compared to standard of care on the GAU. The investigators plan to conduct this study as a feasibility study. It will be a 3-arm randomized controlled trial where participants will be randomized to either: (1) music listening intervention, (2) non-musical sounds involving nature sounds, or (3) standard of care on the GAU. The intervention will take place over 7 consecutive nights.

The primary outcome will be sleep quality, which will be measured objectively using sleep logs and subjectively through patients' own perspectives of their sleep through the Insomnia Severity Index. Secondary outcomes will include patients' sleep quality assessed by smart watches, which the investigators will evaluate to see if the data correlates to the sleep logs and patients' subjective view of their sleep. Other secondary outcomes will include patients' mood, level of pain, number medications used for sleep, duration of stay in hospital, patients' level of enjoyment of the music or non-musical sounds, and feasibility measures.

As this is a feasibility study, the goal is to show that it is possible to conduct a larger study with the same objectives and methodology. The ultimate goal is to create high-quality evidence to support (or refute) our hypothesis that music listening interventions are effective at facilitating sleep for patients admitted to the GAU. This would be a safe and cost-effective intervention to improve the health outcomes of this vulnerable population.

Conditions

• Sleep Disturbance
• Insomnia
• Music Listening Intervention
• Non-musical Sound Listening Intervention

Interventions

OTHER

Music listening intervention

Participants will listen to the music at bedtime and overnight for 7 consecutive nights. The music will be administered via headphones (sleep headbands without a cord) that are connected via Bluetooth to an MP3 player.

OTHER

Non-musical sounds listening intervention

Participants will listen to the non-musical sounds at bedtime and overnight for 7 consecutive nights. The non-musical sounds will be administered via headphones (sleep headbands without a cord) that are connected via Bluetooth to an MP3 player.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• St. Mary's Hospital Foundation

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• McGill University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Julia Chabot, MD, MSc · McGill University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

65 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2022-04-19

Primary Completion

2022-10-31

Completion

2022-10-31

Countries

• Canada

Study Locations