Personal Music for Disorders of Consciousness

Can Personal Music Change the Functional Connectivity of Disorders of Consciousness

Background: The evaluation and treatment of disorders of consciousness(DOC) is a challenging undertaking. Now many neuroimaging techniques were used to detect the level of consciousness and electroencephagram(EEG) was widely used because of its high temporal resolution. Music would be an effective for DOC, due to its highly arousal value. Preferred music was near to persons, so that it would excite more range of cortical and increase the functional connectivity between cortices.

Methods: The exploratory study included 15 health controls and 30 DOC, with 15 minimally conscious state(MCS) and 15 vegetative state(VS). After 5 minutes baseline silence, they listened to relaxing music(RM), preferred music(PM) and amplitude modulated sound(AMS), with 5 minutes baseline silence in the end, meanwhile EEG recorded their cortical activity. Each music was appropriately 5 minutes and separated by 3 minutes washout.

Discussion: The study would verify the effect of preferred music to the functional connectivity of DOC. Music would excite the networks related to consciousness by cross-modal.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. being DOC less than 1 year and more than 28 days;
2. diagnosis of VS and MCS based on CRS-R;
3. the auditory sub-scale of CRS-R scoring more than 0, or Auditory Brainstem Response showing no auditory injury at least one side;
4. stopping using sedatives more than 24 hours prior to study;
5. no history of neurological or psychiatric diseases.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Auditory Brainstem Response showing completely injured auditory pathway(disappeared wave Ⅴ);
2. having epilepsy or EEG showing alpha-coma;
3. widely range of injured scalp or bone.