Citation

Pagnacco G, Klotzek AS, Carrick FR, Wright CHG, Oggero E. Biomed. Sci. Instrum. 2015; 51: 54-61.

Affiliation

University of Wyoming.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, Instrument Society of America)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

25996699

Abstract

Sound is known to affect the human brain, hence sound or music therapy is sometimes used to improve a subject's physical and mental health. In this study, the effects sound stimulation has on balance were investigated by means of computerized dynamic posturography tests performed with eyes closed on an unstable surface using a CAPS® system, exceeding the International Society for Posture and Gait Research (ISPGR) recommended metrological performance standards. Subjects were tested without listening to any music (baseline), listening to 'pure music', and listening to the same music with different tones embedded into it (one for each key). We found that different subjects react differently to different tones. Music alone did not have a statistically significant effect on balance compared to the baseline, but the 'best' tone significantly improved balance compared to the baseline or the 'pure music' conditions. Furthermore, the 'worst' tone reduced the balance compared to 'pure music', but the reduction was not statistically significant relative to the baseline. The results therefore indicate that, at least relative to balance performance, the tone-based sound stimulation we investigated is effective and inherently safe, but that tone selection depends on the individual subject.

Language: en