Abstract, published in Epilepsia Open
Objective: Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders. Many individuals continue to have seizures despite medical and surgical treatments, suggesting adjunctive management strategies are required. Promising effects of daily listening to Mozart on reducing seizure frequency in individuals with epilepsy have been demonstrated over the last 20 years, but not in a rigorously controlled manner. In this study, researchers compared the effect on seizure frequency of daily listening to either Mozart K.448 (a specific piano concerto written by Mozart) or a spectrally similar, yet non-rhythmic control piece. They hypothesized that there would be no difference in seizure counts when participants listened to Mozart K.448 vs when they listened to the control piece.
Methods: The research team employed a randomized crossover design, in which each participant was exposed to both three months of daily listening to the first six minutes of Mozart K.448 (treatment period) and three months of daily listening to phase-scrambled version (control period). There was a three-month baseline and a three-month follow-up period before and after the six-month listening period, respectively. Change in seizure counts obtained from the seizure diaries was considered as the main study outcome.
Results: Analysis revealed a reduction in seizure counts during the treatment period, which was not observed for the control period.
Significance: Using a spectrally similar control piece, this study advances previous reports that were limited by a “no music” control condition. Daily listening to Mozart K.448 was associated with reducing seizure frequency in adult individuals with epilepsy. These results suggest that daily Mozart listening may be considered as an adjunctive therapeutic option to reduce seizure burden in individuals with epilepsy.