Print    Email

Week of May 10 - May 17, 2009

Bill Hemmer:

Whether it's the first dance at your wedding or the theme song of your high school years, music can trigger a flood of memories. Now, scientists mapping the brain say the two are linked in an area that is one of the least affected by neuroligcal disease.

So, is the next big breakthrough for Alzheimer's patients sitting on their iPods? Dr. Keith Siller is a neurologist at NYU Medical Center here in New York. Nice to see you, Doc, thanks for coming in.

Dr. Siller: Thank you.

Bill: I guess anyone who has driven in the car and flipped around the dial and found an 'oldies' station can relate to this. The idea of music sort of bringing in a flood of memories. Talk to us how doctors are now using this as they research different treatments and perhaps even a cure for Alzheimer's.

Dr. Siller: Well, I don't know if this is going to lead to a cure, but it is a concept that could be a novel therapy. The fact is, we have to understand that memory has many different components. We don't just learn by reading, we also learn by any sensory input that we get. Could be music, could be the smell of something. This is a very interesting study because it actually shows us what normal memory is like. The fact that we can tap into long-term memory, for example, is very exciting, through a stimulus that we normally didn't think about.

I think we can all relate to this. You smell a perfume or a song or something else that reminds you of something from the past. So it is a very clever technique which, if done properly, might actually help a patient with a memory disorder.

iPod Therapy: "You have to be clever here. The song or the type of music involved would have to be something that has meaning to that particular person."

Bill: So as far as treatment, take us through this. How might it work? We mentioned iPods. Is that what we are really talking about here? Putting on a headset and letting somebody listen to a song?

Dr. Siller: What I think is really going on here is that this song is associated with something else in that person's past which is meaningful to them. So you have to be clever here. The stimulus you pick, the song or the type of music involved, would have to be something that has meaning to that particular person. It has to be something pleasant, something that would be productive. Obviously what you and I listen to in styles of music may not give us the same reaction. So what you really need to know is what does this mean to that person in terms of their long-term memory from the past.

Bill: It's been said, in things I've read about Alzheimer's, is that the real victims are the loved ones, the caretakers. The patients themselves, obviously, are suffering from the disease, but those around them who have to watch them go through this and who cannot connect with their loved ones anymore are really suffering so much as well. I imagine that the use of music in this study that we are talking about might be very beneficial for those loved ones who would like to feel like they could do something, to give them something tangible that they can do to help their loved ones even at home.

Dr. Siller: No question, and there really is no downside to this. It is safe, it is pleasant. What I think is important scientifically is that rather than us just saying that music is pleasant and makes us feel good is to say that there is real science behind this. It is not just the music itself, but we are actually digging deeper into that person's memory, something they themselves are having trouble accessing, and making it a pleasant experience, something possibly therapeutic.

Bill: On the day we are talking about this, a new study is coming out in California. It's just in that State, it is not a national study. But the study in California says that the number of people suffering from Alzheimer's in California will almost double by 2030. Why is that?

Dr. Siller: Well, the population is living longer. Quite frankly, Alzheimer's disease is one of those entitities that, as we live longer, is more likely to be prevalent just because of the aging process. So one of the by-products of our good healthcare and living longer is that we are going to be more susceptible to things like this which, unfortunately, are going to be on the rise, and a lot of healthy people are going to be around as well.

Bill: Dr. Keith Siller, Neurologist, NYU Medical Center. Nice to talk to you, Dr. Siller. Thank you for being here.

Dr. Siller: Thank you for having me.

FIGHTING THE FIGHT!
MORE ARTICLES ON THIS SITE:

New research from the University of California-Davis uncovers associations between music and memory. It furthers development of music-based therapy for people with dementias such as Alzheimer's. One conclusion: "Providing patients with MP3 players and customized playlists could prove to be a quality-of-life improvement strategy that would be both effective and economical."

People with dementias such as Alzheimer's generally have a strong, positive response to music. Music taps into automatic memory, which seems to stay with them. In a new project, music therapists help spouses create meaningful experiences with their partner.

Barbara Jacobs shares the experience of her twelve-year career as a therapeutic musician in elder facilities.

SOURCE:

FoxNews.COM

© 2009 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved.

Reviewed by
Dr. Boaz Ancselovic, MD, Geriatrician, Alzheimer's Weekly.