Table. Characteristics of Included Studies.
| Source | Study design | Population | Music intervention | Music intervention group | Control group | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Length | Session frequency | Session duration | Total, No. | Men/women | Mean age, y | Type | Total, No. | |||
| Altena et al,35 2009 | RCT | Clinical (hypertension) | Music listening (“slow music”) | 9 wk | Daily | Not specified | 15 | 8/7 | 59 | Exercises with breathing device | 15 |
| Ashok, Shanmugam, and Soman,31 2019 | RCT | Clinical (coronary bypass) | Music listening (sedative music without lyrics with tempo 60-80 beats per minute) + TAU | 1 wk | Daily | 20 min | 20 | 6/14 | 60.8 | TAU (cardiac rehabilitation) | 20 |
| Atiwannapat et al,39 2016 | RCT | Clinical (major depressive disorder) | Music therapy (individual, active) | 12 wk | Weekly | 1 h | 5 | 1/4 | 41.6 | Group counselling | 4 |
| Music therapy (individual, receptive) | 12 wk | Weekly | 1 h | 5 | 2/3 | 54.4 | Group counselling | 4 | |||
| Bittman et al,46 2020 | RCT | Clinical (2 or more metabolic risk factors) | Gospel music program (singing and playing musical instruments [clavinovas, guitars, drums]) + health education | 1 y | Weekly | 45 min | 36 | 6/30 | 62.5 | Health education (cardiovascular risk reduction) | 35 |
| Burrai et al,32 2020 | RCT | Clinical (heart failure) | Music listening (recorded classical music; experimenter-selected tracks with tempo 60-80 beats per minute) | 12 wk | Daily | 30 min | 82 | 47/35 | 71.6 | TAU (heart failure) | 77 |
| Corvo, Skingley, and Clift,33 2020 | Single group study | Healthy (older people) | Singing (1 singing group | 12 wk | Weekly | 2 h | 41 | “Predominantly female” | No data | NA | NA |
| Coulton et al,41 2015 | RCT | Healthy (older people) | Singing (group) | 14 wk | Weekly | 1.5 h | 131 | 25/106 | 69.2 | Wait list | 127 |
| Davidson et al,25 2014 | Single group study | Healthy (older people) | Singing (group) | 8 wk | Weekly | 1.5 h | 29 | 21/8 | 77.5 | NA | NA |
| Gale et al,42 2012 | Single group study | Clinical (cancer survivors) | Singing (group) | 12 wk | Weekly | 2 h | 30 | Unspecified | 60.2 | NA | NA |
| Groener et al,30 2015 | RCT | Clinical (diabetes) | Singing (group) + Health education | 3 d | Daily | 30 min | 18 | 14/4 | 46 | Health education | 17 |
| Hagemann, Martin, and Neme,26 2020 | Single group study | Clinical (chronic kidney disease) | Music therapy (group, active) | 4 wk | Twice weekly | 1.25 h | 23 | 12/11 | 54.9 | NA | NA |
| Innes et al,47 2018 | RCT | Clinical (knee osteoarthritis) | Music listening (recorded classical music; patient choice of 80 experimenter-selected songs) | 8 wk | Twice daily | 20 min | 11 | 5/6 | 58.8 | Meditation (Mantra) | 11 |
| Innes et al,48 2016 | RCT | Clinical (cognitive decline) | Music listening (recorded classical music; patient choice of 80 experimenter-selected songs) | 12 wk | Daily | 12 min | 30 | 5/25 | 60.2 | Meditation (Kirtan Kriya) | 30 |
| Lavretsky et al,49 2013 | RCT | Clinical (dementia caregivers with depressive symptoms) | Music listening (recorded music; experimenter provided CD) | 8 wk | Daily | 12 min | 16 | 2/14 | 60.6 | Meditation (Kirtan Kriya) | 23 |
| Lee, Chan, Mok29 2010 | RCT | Healthy (older people) | Music listening (Patient choice of experimenter-selected music; meditative, Asian classical, Western classical, slow jazz, Chinese classical) | 4 wk | Weekly | 30 min | 31 | 11/20 | 75.5 | Inactive | 35 |
| Logtenberg et al,36 2007 | RCT | Clinical (type 2 diabetes + hypertension) | Music listening (“various kinds of random music”) | 8 wk | Daily | Not specified | 15 | 3/12 | 62.7 | Exercises with breathing device | 15 |
| Lord et al,45 2010 | RCT | Clinical (COPD) | Singing (group) + breathing education | 6 wk | Twice weekly | 1 h | 15 | No data | 66.6 | Breathing education alone | 13 |
| Lord et al,43 2012 | RCT | Clinical (COPD) | Singing (group) + breathing education | 8 wk | Twice weekly | 1 h | 13 | No data | 68.6 | Film workshops + breathing education | 11 |
| Mandel et al,50 2007 | RCT | Clinical (cardiac rehabilitation) | Music therapy (active, individual) + TAU | 10 wk | Every other week | 1.5 h | 55 | 27/28 | 65 | TAU (cardiac rehabilitation) | 48 |
| Mateu et al,37 2018 | Single group crossover study | Clinical (low-back pain) | Music listening (relaxing music; patient choice of songs from provided CD) | 8 wk | Daily | Not specified | 58 | 15/43 | 51 | Progressive muscle relaxation with ‘low-level background music’ | 58 |
| Mujdeci et al,40 2015 | Single group study | Clinical (tinnitus) | Music therapy (receptive; listening to patient preferred recorded music, edited to be 70% music and 30% noise) | 8 wk | Daily | 2 h | 13 | 7/6 | 46.8 | NA | NA |
| Philip et al,44 2020 | RCT | Clinical (COPD) | Singing (group) + TAU | 12 wk | Weekly | 1 h | 9 | 6/3 | 72.1 | TAU (COPD) | 9 |
| Ribeiro,27 2018 | RCT | Clinical (NICU mothers) | Music therapy (individual; receptive) + TAU | 7 wk | Weekly | 45 min | 10 | 0/10 | 25.8 | TAU (NICU) | 11 |
| Wahlstöm et al,38 2020 | RCT | Clinical (atrial fibrillation) | Music listening (relaxing recorded music (MediCure) delivered in group setting) + TAU | 12 wk | Weekly | 30 min | 29 | 14/15 | 64 | TAU (atrial fibrillation) | 41 |
| Zanini et al,28 2009 | RCT | Clinical (hypertension) | Music therapy (group, active) + TAU | 12 wk | Weekly | 1 h | 23 | 7/16 | 66.5 | TAU (hypertension) | 22 |
| Zeppegno et al,34 2021 | RCT | Clinical (breast cancer) | Music therapy (group, active) + TAU | 6 wk | Weekly | 1 h | 26 | No data | No data | TAU (radiotherapy) | 29 |
Abbreviations: COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder; NA, not applicable; NICU, neonatal intensive care unit; RCT, randomized controlled trial; TAU, treatment as usual.