Music enhances verbal episodic memory in Alzheimer’s disease

Abstract

A musical association during the encoding stage facilitates learning and retention in AD. Furthermore, this advantage seemed quite specific to music. The results are discussed with respect to the clinical applications in AD; theoretical implications are highlighted to explain the power of music as a mnemonic technique.

Sung melody enhances verbal learning and recall after stroke

“…Additionally, the amusic and the memory‐impaired subjects showed an advantage of sung over spoken task performance in delayed recall (memory‐impaired subjects also in the second learning trial) at the 6‐month stage. In general, the positive mnemonic effects of the sung stories observed here in all patient subgroups are in line with similar findings from previous studies of persons with MS and AD . At the neural level, these effects are most likely related to the bilaterality of the temporal, frontal, and limbic networks engaged in processing songs and to the preservation of vocal music processing in spared brain regions previously reported in amusia and aphasia after stroke using fMRI .…”

“…In general, the positive mnemonic effects of the sung stories observed here in all patient subgroups are in line with similar findings from previous studies of persons with MS 25 and AD. [26][27][28] At the neural level, these effects are most likely related to the bilaterality of the temporal, frontal, and limbic networks engaged in processing songs [45][46][47] and to the preservation of vocal music processing in spared brain regions previously reported in amusia and aphasia after stroke using fMRI. 39 Similarly, singing-based training has been observed to be beneficial both for enhancing speech production in aphasia [22][23][24] and singing production and music perception in amusia.…”

“…), very little is yet known about the potential mnemonic effects of songs for learning and recall of novel verbal material in neurological patients. An advantage of sung material over spoken material has previously been observed in the learning and recall of word lists in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, as well as in the recognition of unfamiliar song lyrics in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients . To date, only two studies have assessed the learning of unfamiliar song lyrics in stroke patients with chronic aphasia .…”

“…An advantage of sung material over spoken material has previously been observed in the learning and recall of word lists in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, 25 as well as in the recognition of unfamiliar song lyrics in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. [26][27][28] To date, only two studies have assessed the learning of unfamiliar song lyrics in stroke patients with chronic aphasia. 29,30 In a case study by Hébert et al, 29 a right hemispherelesioned, severely aphasic patient did not show better repetition of unfamiliar song lyrics when presented in sung versus spoken format.…”

Preservation of Musical Memory Throughout the Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease? Toward a Reconciliation of Theoretical, Clinical, and Neuroimaging Evidence

“…Some authors suggest that it merely provides an arousal effect, heightening our attention and priming our perceptual systems to encode and store the memories with more precision. However, this would suggest that any arousal means would have the same end, but it seems to be inaccurate: musically accompanied text is better retained than associated with non-musical sound or video [96].…”