Surgery Music

Surgery with Music Benefits

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Benefits of Surgery with Music: Medical Research Documents

April 29th, 2013 · Characteristics of music for surgery, Common Fears in Surgery, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery, How music works, Uncategorized

As the word spreads about your options for using music during surgery, the studies come out, documenting the benefits, and the list of benefits grows and grows.   Here are a few of the main benefits for the patient having general anesthesia:

For the patient:  Slow, steady, and soothing instrumental music can

  • Decrease anxiety and the need for as much anxiety medication
  • Decrease the amount of propofol needed as a result of patients level of relaxation
  • Decrease the amount of pain medication needed during and after surgery
  • Decrease the amount of time in the recovery area as a result of
  • Less nausea and vomiting
  • Less dizziness and confusion
  • Faster recovery and back to work because of less anesthesia

For the surgeon:  Upbeat, steady tempo, instrumental music can

  • Improve focus
  • Maintain energy level
  • Decrease distractability

For the hospital:  Benefits of using separate music for patient and surgeon

  • Safer procedures with less side-effects
  • Patients safely discharged sooner because of less anesthesia and pain meds
  • Customer satisfaction sky-rockets
  • More patients are able to be seen during the day

My sincerest hope is that one day all hospitals will use music in their operating rooms to soothe and comfort the patient in a natural and effective way, through cordless, pre-programmed headphones, while the surgeon has his favorite upbeat music that allows him to have a laser focus and plenty of energy through speakers in the OR.  There is ample research to document all of these benefits.  Click HERE to see a presentation on Music with Surgery.  Please feel free to contact me with any questions!

 

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Will my surgeon let me use music in the operating room?

April 4th, 2013 · Anesthesia, Characteristics of music for surgery, Common Fears in Surgery, Headphones for other medical procedures, Music in the hospitals, surgery preparation, Uncategorized

Great question!  Many people fear that even if they want to use their own music in the Operating Room, their doctor won’t allow it because of concerns with germs, cleaniliness, or some sort of interference with their equipment.  Let me address these concerns, one by one:

Could music through headphones or an iPod/MP3 play introduce germs into the surgical field?  I have been told repeatedly by surgical personnel, that everything in the OR does NOT have to be sterilized.  Only the instruments that go inside the patient music be sterilized.  The table, floor, lamps, etc. are disinfected but not sterilized.  Although the headphones that each person uses are brand-new and not touched by human hands once packaged, my recommendation that you order them several days in advance allows you to practice relaxing with them at home and get used to turning them off and on and adjusting the volume.  So that when you arrive at the hospital, they will likely be wiped down with disinfectant anyway, but can also easily fit under the cap that the patient wears over their own hair and head.

Even in 2005, there were a few surgeons who would balk at the idea of bringing an ipod or headphones in the to the OR, but today, the benefits of the right kind of music in surgery, are so well documented that it is not an issue.  Also, the fact that probably the majority of surgery now have music playing in the OR, makes it seem more natural for the patient to bring his music in.  Especially for regional anesthesia or local anesthesia, it makes sense to let the patient bring in the music that will be comforting for them.

Rhythmic entrainment is so powerful and so well-documented that there is no questions that slow, steady, soothing music will calm a person down by slowly and regulating their breathing.  You have a couple of choices.  You can choose your favorite slow, steady, instrumental music and load it onto your iPod, or you can purchase cordless, preprogrammed headphones to take into surgery and they will last you for 5-10 years, and can be re-loaded with whatever music you like.  Best wishes on your surgery and let me know if I can help you or answer any questions!

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Another New Research Study on Benefits of Music during Surgery

February 15th, 2013 · Dangers and Side-effects of anesthesia, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery, Music and Anesthesia, Recent Research on Surgery with Music

J Altern Complement Med. 2012 Sep 18.

Music’s Use for Anesthesia and Analgesia.

Source

2nd Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine University of Athens,  “ATTIKON” University Hospital , Chaidari, Athens,  Greece .

Abstract

“Abstract   This review article provides an overview of published data regarding the involvement of music in anesthesia practice. Music is an important topic for research in different fields of anesthesiology. The use of music preoperatively is aimed at reducing anxiety, stress, and fear. However, the effect of music on perception of pain intraoperatively is controversial, according to studies of both adults and children undergoing various surgical procedures under general and/or regional anesthesia. In postoperative pain management, postanesthesia care, and neonatal intensive care, music can be a complementary method for reducing pain, anxiety, and stress. Music is a mild anxiolytic, but it is relatively ineffective when a pain stimulus is severe. However, music is inexpensive, easily administered, and free of adverse effects, and as such, can serve as complementary method for treating perioperative stress and for acute and chronic pain management, even though music’s effectiveness depends on each individual patient’s disposition and severity of pain stimulus.”

There are probably thousands of anecdotal reports about the benefits of music before, during and after surgery, but in the world of medicine, only the statistically documented studies count.  I’ve been collecting these studies for about 15 years now and they are getting better and better!

As we move forward with our process of getting the Surgical Serenity Solution into hospitals primarily, and into the hands of patients, secondarily, these studies are very important.  Please help me get the world out to your friends and family.  Also, please feel free to send me any questions or comment you might have.  Thank you!

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Music with Surgery just makes so much sense!!

January 16th, 2013 · Anesthesia, Dangers and Side-effects of anesthesia, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery

Have you ever had surgery in a hospital?  Are you expecting to have surgery in the future?  Then you must know that surgeons and anesthesiologists have been using music in the Operating Room for over 50 years now!  At yet, it is still not expected and it is not really the “norm.”  Why not?  Because it takes a little extra time and effort to make it happen and hospital staffs are so overworked and overloaded that many fal into the trap of thinking that it’s “just a nicety that doesn’t really affect the quality of the procedure or doesn’t really affect the patient’s recovery.”  Of course we know that nothing could be farther from the truth!  The benefits of music before, during and after surgery are many, but here are the top ones:

  •  Listening to slow, steady, soothing music, through cordless headphones before surgery calms the patient and allows them to begin relaxing before the surgery through music, rather than through having IV anti-anxiety drugs
  • Listenting to slow, steady, soothing music, through cordless headphones during surgery begins and maintains the process of “rhythmic entrainment” during surgery so that the patient’s heart-rate and breathing will synchronize with the pulse of the music and the body will stay calm and relaxed so that patient requires less anesthesia and less pain medication.
  • Listening to slow, steady, soothing music, through cordless headphones after surgery, allows the patient to regain consciousness in a calm sonic environment, and continue to benefit from the effects of rhythmic entrainment, which allows him to require less pain medication in the recovery area, experience less nausea, dizziness, and confusion and recover faster from the procedure.

If you or a loved one are scheduled for surgery, talk to your doctor, surgeon or anesthesia professional about using music as an adjunct to calm, comfort and make you secure and reassured about your procedure.  Feel free to contact me, too, through this blog!

 

 

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Surgery with Music: What are the options?

December 1st, 2012 · Anesthesia, Characteristics of music for surgery, Common Fears in Surgery, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery, Fear of anesthesia, How music works

People preparing for surgery having been asking this question for about 30 years now.  Although the use of music in a medical/healing environment is ancient, only in the late 20th century were we actually able to measure the effects that music has on the patient.  For an intervention to be considered scientifically meaningful or valid, there must be research.  Now the studies have been done and we know, for sure, music before, during and after surgery is a great idea!

So what are your options?  Here is how I see them:

1.  Tell your surgeon that you’d like to be listening to some calming, soothing music during your process, whatever that might be, and trust him to make it happen.

2.  Spend some time, probably 3-5 hours, going through your CD’s or iPod playlists, and choose about an hour’s worth of your favorite calming, soothing music, to take into surgery on your iPod, if your surgeon will allow you to take your iPod in!

3.  Buy the “state-of-the-art” Surgical Serenity pre-programmed headphones that have 2e years of research behind the selection of the music and they way in which it is delivered.  These headphones have been used by hundreds of people in hospitals across the country, Canada, Hawaii, and Europe.  Many people have contacted us and sent powerful reports about how much the headphones helped them to be calm and feel fewer side-effects of the anesthesia and pain medication.  Also, these headphones can be used for years to come and re-loaded with other kinds of music for you to enjoy when you want to relax.  We’ve even had children use them during surgery and are hoping to have a child-sized model created and loaded with music just for children.

There is no question that music before, during and after surgery is a great idea.  Whether you choose your own music and load it on your iPod, or buy ready-to-go headphones, let yourself benefit from all the many advantages of music during your surgery or other medical procedure!

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Surgical Serenity Solutions: Combating Side-Effects of Anesthesia and other meds

October 19th, 2012 · Anesthesia, Common Fears in Surgery, Dangers and Side-effects of anesthesia, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery, Headphones for other medical procedures

Music Helps with Surgical Side-Effects

No one wants to have surgery.  No one wants to be in the hospital, but sometime you really don’t have a choice.  If you are in an automobile accident and seriously hurt, going to a hospital and having surgery might save your life when nothing else would.  If you’re told you need to have a colonoscopy for diagnostic purposes or if your appendix is inflamed and in danger of bursting, you’ll want to be in a hospital.  But there is a very simple procedure that can greatly reduce the pain, anxiety and side-effects of surgery and anesthesia.  That intervention is music.  Is there documentation of this?  Absolutely!  Here is a link to one recent study:  www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19388893  “Relaxing Music as Pre-Medication before Surgery.”  It is a well-known fact that nowadays, many surgeons play music in the operating room.  Do they play slow, soothing, calming music?  Usually not!  They play upbeat, faster music that keeps their energy level up and their focus sharp.  This is a good idea for the surgeon and other staff members, but it is not good for the patient!  The patients needs slow, soothing, purely instrumental music that will entrain, or synchronize his heart rate and breathing to the music.  The studies show clearly that patients receiving music before, during and after surgery suffer from less nausea, less dizziness, less confusion and recover faster because they require less pain medication and often, less anesthesia.  It really makes sense if you think about it. More and more patients are  bringing their own iPods and other devices into surgery and that is usually an option, but if you don’t have the time to create your playlist or don’t know how, or don’t want to, pre-programmed headphones created especially for your surgery are available.  Questions?  Just send them to me through this blog!

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Music with Surgery, Case History #7: Dental Surgery

October 12th, 2012 · Anesthesia, Common Fears in Surgery, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery, Headphones for other medical procedures

Dental surgery in your future?

Whenever I mention using music for surgery, everyone says “have you thought about using the Serenity Headphones for dental surgery?  Why yes, that has been one  intended use from the beginning!   It definitely makes sense, since the sound of the dental drill is one of the most un-nerving sounds on the planet. My dentist has had headphones available for years, but they are the kind that plug into the wall and there are so many cords near the chair I choose not to use his at all.  Plus, they are set just to play the radio station that office staff chooses which I don’t usually prefer. Here’s a patient’s account from Canada:         ” I had my dental surgery on Wednesday, April 8th with your surgery music and it was wonderful.  I had begun listening to the music ahead of time, so they were like old friends when surgery time rolled around.  Benefits were I kept expecting to be nervous as the date of surgery rolled around, but found I couldn’t summon up any anxiety!  I was sure I wouldn’t be able to sleep prior to the surgery, but, guess what, I slept well!  I was calm and relaxed befor the surgery; my blood pressure dropped to normal limits; the dentist and staff tucked me in, made sure the music was playing, and away we went. Post-op I was still relaxed-had a sleep and had little pain.  I had a bunch of work done.  I did take an Advil at bedtime just for “insurance” but really didn’t need it.  Thank you Dr. Cash, for your beautiful music and the cordless pre-programmed headphones!” Anne Thoen, Alberta, Canada So, if you have a sensitive mouth, need some dental work and want to try a tested and proven method of coping with dental pain and anxiety, I suggest you get our headphones, which come pre-programmed and fully charged!  Or you can purchase a download of the serenity music to load on your own MP3 player or iPod!  Best wishes for a successful surgery!

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Prepare for Surgery: The “Lost” Tool

September 26th, 2012 · Anesthesia, Dangers and Side-effects of anesthesia, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery, Fear of anesthesia, Fear of surgery, surgery preparation

Music Benefits Surgery

Preparing for surgery is something that no one really wants to do, but taking the “ostrich” approach   doesn’t work either!  If you need surgery for whatever reason, you might as well educate yourself  about ways that you can make the process easier and more effective!  One of the tools that humans and physicians from ancient times have used is music!  Why?  Because music soothes, comforts, calms, and relaxes the body and mind simultaneously.  When the mind and body are calm, it takes less anesthesia, less pain medication and less anxiety medication to get you through the procedure, whever that procedure might be. Is this just a theory of mine?  Absolutely not!  Just go to www.pubmed.gov and do a simple search for “music with surgery.”  I just did it and came up with 1003 citations!!  Still, most patients and even many, many physicians don’t realize how potent music is, in it’s ability to help the patient calm down and have a better result from their surgery.  The news media seem to rush to publish the catastrophic disasters encountered during surgery, but how often do they publish simple tips for people who are preparing to have surgery?  Music is an oft overlooked addition to the tool-kit.  Don’t YOU be one to forget about music!  You can make your own playlist or purchase headphones that are already pre-programmed and ready-to-go!  Please contact me here if I can help!

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How soon will you be having surgery?

September 20th, 2012 · Characteristics of music for surgery, Common Fears in Surgery, Fear and Anxiety about Surgery, Fear of anesthesia, Fear of surgery

If you’ve just found out that you need surgery, then you’re probably still shaking and quaking from the news.  Perhaps you expected it, but perhaps you did not!  So many people have a natural fear of surgery, and especially a fear of being put to sleep or anesthetized.  The chances of something going wrong are less than 1%, but if you are part of this small group, your life might be at risk.  Of course, if you need surgery and don’t have it, then your life is at risk anyway.

I was always taught that knowledge is power, so with that in mind, I want to tell you about one specific option that more and more people are turning to in order to increase the chances of a positive result and at the same time, decrease many of the dangers.  This solution is so simple that many people overlook it completely, but it is so easy and safe that it is definitely worth giving a try.  That solution is music!  Not just any music though.  The ideal music for surgery, especially if you’ll be put completely to sleep is music that is very slow and rhythmic.  It is music that has the tempo of the healthy resting heartbeat and is purely instrumental, in other words, no lyrics!  Ideally, the music should be played on a soothing instrument such as piano, harp, or flute.  Probably not a brass instrument.  Needless to say, there are millions of pieces of music that would fit this description, but after over 20 years research into the best music for surgery, I have chosen a set of pieces that I think are the best and hundreds of people have now listened to this music during their procedures and agree that it is amazingly calming and helpful.  Some have told me that they will never again have surgery without this specific music playing through headphones!

Would YOU like to give it a try for your upcoming surgery?  If so, just go to www.surgeryheadphones.com.  There you can buy either pre-programmed headphones or a download of our scientifically researched music.  This particular blog has literally hundreds of posts about the benefits, and FAQ’s of music with surgery!  I would love to help you personally if you have questions and can set up an online consult with you via SKYPE or telephone call.  If you live in the Louisville, KY area you can come into our offices for a face to face consult!  Best wishes for a successful procedure.

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Music with Surgery: Case History #6, 63 year-old woman with a lumpectomy

September 20th, 2012 · Anesthesia, Dangers and Side-effects of anesthesia, Fear of anesthesia, Music and Anesthesia

Patient was a 63-year old woman who had just discovered that she had a lump in her breast.  Patient had already met with her surgeon and had decided to have a lumpectomy rather than a mastectomy because they had caught it early and were fairly confident that it was still contained to the one spot in her breast.

As a result of talking to her friends and family, patient decided that she would like to try using music with her procedure in order to lessen the side-effects of anesthesia by decreasing the amount of anesthesia she would need.  She was excited to hear that by augmenting the effects of anesthesia with music, she would require less anesthesia.  Listen as this patient explains what the experience was like for her:

If you have been told that you need a lumpectomy or a mastectomy, please consider using the Surgical Serenity Headphones. For more information, see www.surgicalheadphones.com.

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