Effects of music on body and facial expressions and psychological and behavioral symptoms of older adults

Abstract

Objective: To compare the physiological, behavioral and expressive effects of nonpharmacological interventions through songs of Brazilian popular character (representative of the life history of the older adults) and classical music in the elderly population with institutionalized dementia. Method: A quantitative, almost-experimental and comparative study was carried out in two groups: “Intervention Group with Popular Music” (IGPM; n = 19) and “Control Group with Classical Music” (CGCM n = 14) in two Long Institutions Stay for the Elderly people (ILPI). After approval by the Research Ethics Committee (Process nº 1,981,699 / 2017), four (4) individual sessions were held, with five (5) songs. The measures of Psychological and Comparative Symptoms of Dementia (PCSD) were compared between groups; the physiological parameters (frequency and blood pressure) before and after the intervention; facial expressions through the Facial Action Coding System (FACS); and bodily movements. Results: Greater percentage obtained by IGPM for: expressions by FACS of joy (p = 0.039) and surprise (p = 0.041); and greater number of head and trunk movements (t) (t = 2.94, p = 0.006) when compared to CGCM. Regarding SPCD, GIMP presented a significant decrease in the severity of delirium symptoms (t = 2.379, p = .029). Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that the representative of the song of the life trajectory of this population can awaken: satisfaction with life, memories, and joy to live when compared to classical music.

Keywords

• dementia
• aged
• homes for the aged
• music