Brain Activation by Music in Patients in a Vegetative or Minimally Conscious State Following Diffuse Brain Injury

Journal

Brain Injury

Year

2014

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to objectively evaluate the brain activity potential of patients with impaired consciousness in a chronic stage of diffuse brain injury (DBI) using functional MRI (fMRI) following music stimulation (MS). Methods: Two patients in a minimally conscious state (MCS) and five patients in a vegetative state (VS) due to severe DBI were enrolled along with 21 healthy adults. This study examined the brain regions activated by music and assessed topographical differences of the MS-activated brain among healthy adults and these patients. Results: MS was shown to activate the bilateral superior temporal gyri (STG) of both healthy adults and patients in an MCS. In four of five patients in a VS, however, no significant activation in STG could be induced by the same MS. The remaining patient in a VS displayed the same MS-induced brain activation in STG as healthy adults and patients in an MCS and this patient’s status also improved to an MCS 4 months after the study. Conclusions: The presence of STG activation by MS may predict a possible improvement of patients in a VS to MCS and fMRI employing MS may be a useful modality to objectively evaluate consciousness in these patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Music and Health Institute Terms

Music and Cognition; Music Perception; Observational Measures; Physiological Measures; Traumatic Brain Injury

Indexed Terms

Auditory Perception; Prospective Studies; Adolescents; Acoustic Stimulation; Awareness; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Brain Mapping; Brain Injuries; Traumatic Brain Injury; brain injury; Recovery of Function; Cerebral Cortex; Predictive Value of Tests; functional MRI; Persistent Vegetative State; Consciousness States; Auditory Cortex; minimally conscious state; vegetative state

Study Type

Quasi-Experimental Study; Quantitative Methods

Document Type

Article

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