AUTHOR=Erkkilä Jaakko , Brabant Olivier , Hartmann Martin , Mavrolampados Anastasios , Ala-Ruona Esa , Snape Nerdinga , Saarikallio Suvi , Gold Christian 

TITLE=Music Therapy for Depression Enhanced With Listening Homework and Slow Paced Breathing: A Randomised Controlled Trial

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.613821

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2021.613821

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Introduction:</bold> There is evidence from earlier trials for the efficacy of music therapy in the treatment of depression among working-age people. Starting therapy sessions with relaxation and revisiting therapeutic themes outside therapy have been deemed promising for outcome enhancement. However, previous music therapy trials have not investigated this issue.</p><p><bold>Objective:</bold> To investigate the efficacy of two enhancers, resonance frequency breathing (RFB) and listening homework (LH), when combined with an established music therapy model (trial registration number ISRCTN11618310).</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> In a 2 × 2 factorial randomised controlled trial, working-age individuals with depression were allocated into groups based on four conditions derived from either the presence or absence of two enhancers (RFB and LH). All received music therapy over 6 weeks. Outcomes were observed at 6 weeks and 6 months. The primary outcome was the Montgomery Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) score.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> There was a significant overall effect of treatment for the primary outcome favouring the breathing group (<italic>d</italic> = 0.50, 95% CI 0.07 to 0.93, <italic>p</italic> = 0.02). The effect was larger after adjustment for potential confounders (<italic>d</italic> = 0.62, 95% CI 0.16 to 1.08, <italic>p</italic> = 0.009). Treatment effects for secondary outcomes, including anxiety (anxiety scale of Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) and quality of life (RAND-36), were also significant, favouring the breathing group. The homework enhancer did not reach significant treatment effects.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> We found that the addition of RFB to a music therapy intervention resulted in enhanced therapeutic outcome for clients with depression.</p>