The novel concept of individualized music therapy seems to provide an effective treatment option in the rehabilitation of adult CI users. Further investigations are necessary to evaluate effects in the area of prosody perception and to separate therapy effects from general learning effects in CI rehabilitation.

No abstract

Music perception shows deficits in CI users compared to normally hearing persons. After individual music therapy in the rehabilitation process, improvements in this delicate area could be achieved.

The aim of this pilot study was the evaluation of the neuro-music therapy approach as a new treatment option for patients with recent-onset tinnitus whose tinnitus symptoms were enduring after initial pharmacological treatment. In all, 15 patients with recent-onset tinnitus took part in our manualized short-term music-therapeutic treatment. Tinnitus severity and individual tinnitus distress were assessed by the German version of the tinnitus questionnaire (TQ) and the Attention and Performance Self-Assessment Scale (APSA) at three different measurement times: baseline (T 0 ), start of treatment (T 1 ), and end of treatment (T 2 ). Score changes in TQ and APSA from start to end of treatment indicated significant improvements in tinnitus-related distress. According to the Jacobson and Truax reliable change index (RC), 73.3% of the patients showed a reliable reduction in individual TQ-score. The neuro-music therapy for recent-onset tinnitus according to the "Heidelberg Model" introduced in this pilot study seems to provide an effective treatment option for patients with recent-onset tinnitus.