It is known that drugs and brain stimulation techniques (TMS, DBS, VS) have been developed for people suffering from Parkinson’s disease and parkinsonism. Harmoniously combining medicines and stimulating techniques, it becomes possible to really improve their condition, improve the quality of life. And even prolong it by holding back degenerative processes in the brain.
Also, to maintain health in such patients, physical activity and the organization of a healthy lifestyle are of value. It is important to observe the daily routine and a rational, nutritious diet.
Music prolongs life
According to a number of studies conducted by American scientists, it turned out that medications and complex therapy are not all that can help patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Regular music and singing lessons have a positive effect on the well-being of people with Parkinson’s disease. There are also positive changes in the mental and somatic health of patients.
Participants in the study, suffering from various stages of parkinsonism, attended music classes for several weeks. During such sessions, they sang songs and performed vocal exercises. And positive results were noted by many participants in the study.
What is the essence of music therapy for Parkinson’s disease
The fact is that when singing, the muscles necessary for a person to swallow, talk and breathe actively work. It is known that the control of vocal muscles suffers in parkinsonian syndromes and PD.
Vocal exercises do not allow these muscles to “stagnate”, keep them in good shape. And by the feedback mechanism, they activate the voice centers in the brain.
In addition to strengthening these muscles, there are other positive effects of singing:
- mood improves;
- the level of stress is reduced;
- depression recedes.
And no wonder, because music affects the emotional state of a person. Emotional responses involve different areas of the brain.
Unpleasant sounds activate the right parahippocampal gyrus in the brain. And pleasant ones – the orbitofrontal region of the cortex of the right hemisphere, as well as a small area located under the corpus callosum.
Sound and therapy for brain diseases
In principle, scientists have long known that music and sounds can affect the human brain. The sound entering through the ears to the brain is processed in a certain way by the outer and middle ear.
The auditory nerve then generates electrical signals that are transmitted to neurons. These brain cells react differently to the melody, depending on the position of the tones in the melody.
In the Clinic of Restorative Neurology, we use our own, author’s developments for the sound treatment of Parkinson’s disease.
The team of the Department of Neurology and Clinical Neurophysiology, under the guidance of Professor R.F. Gimranov , various methods of audiotherapy have been developed :
- music harmonization of the bioelectrical activity of the brain;
- stimulation of subcortical and cortical structures with certain sound frequencies;
- using the binaural beat effect;
- infrasound, subthreshold sound stimuli;
- sound therapy , “music of the brain”.
Recall that neurons can change if they are trained. So, in people who play music, the area of \u200b\u200bsound zones is larger than in ordinary people. This means that compensatory resources are better, the rate of neural degradation is lower.