Music therapy for people with substance use disorders

Abstract

BackgroundSubstance use disorder (SUD) is the continued use of one or more psychoactive substances, including alcohol, despite negative e ects on health, functioning, and social relations. Problematic drug use has increased by 10% globally since 2013, and harmful use of alcohol is associated with 5.3% of all deaths. Direct e ects of music therapy (MT) on problematic substance use are not known, but it may be helpful in alleviating associated psychological symptoms and decreasing substance craving. ObjectivesTo compare the e ect of music therapy (MT) in addition to standard care versus standard care alone, or to standard care plus an active control intervention, on psychological symptoms, substance craving, motivation for treatment, and motivation to stay clean/sober. Search methodsWe searched the following databases (from inception to 1 February 2021): the Cochrane Drugs and Alcohol Specialised Register; CENTRAL; MEDLINE (PubMed); eight other databases, and two trials registries. We handsearched reference lists of all retrieved studies and relevant systematic reviews. Selection criteriaWe included randomised controlled trials comparing MT plus standard care to standard care alone, or MT plus standard care to active intervention plus standard care for people with SUD. Data collection and analysisWe used standard Cochrane methodology. Main resultsWe included 21 trials involving 1984 people. We found moderate-certainty evidence of a medium e ect favouring MT plus standard care over standard care alone for substance craving (standardised mean di erence (SMD) -0.66, 95% confidence interval (CI) -1.23 to -0.10; 3 studies, 254 participants), with significant subgroup di erences indicating greater reduction in craving for MT intervention lasting one to three months; and small-to-medium e ect favouring MT for motivation for treatment/change (SMD 0.41, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.61; 5 studies, 408 participants). We found no clear evidence of a beneficial e ect on depression (SMD -0.33, 95% CI -0.72 to 0.07; 3 studies, 100 participants), or motivation to stay sober/clean (SMD 0.22, 95% CI -0.02 to 0.47; 3 studies, 269 participants), though e ect sizes ranged from large Music therapy for people with substance use disorders (Review)

Beyond the Smoke: A Phenomenological Study of Health and Social Implications of Kush Use Among Sierra Leonean Youths

“…However, the limitations concerning the withdrawal symptoms, social consequences, and the design of existing support networks reveal considerable drawbacks in the state of assistance for drug users in Sierra Leone. There is clearly and urgent need for a multisectoral, community-centred, stakeholder-engaged, collaborative intervention[19,20].…”

An exploratory interpretivist study of how adults with substance use disorders experience peer social connectedness during recovery-oriented songwriting

“…Music therapy is available in 14.7% of SUD treatment programs in the United States (Aletraris et al, 2014). Researchers conducting systematic reviews and meta-analyses have found evidence that music therapy interventions can decrease substance cravings (Ghetti et al, 2022; Megranahan & Lynskey, 2018) and increase treatment motivation or motivation to change (Carter & Panisch, 2020; Ghetti et al, 2022; Megranahan & Lynskey, 2018) among people with SUD. In a review of qualitative studies of music therapy for individuals with SUD, Hohmann et al (2017) identified expression of emotions, interactions with the group, and improving skills and quality of life as central themes.…”

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“… 2017 , 2022 ; Ghetti et al. 2022 ). Den therapeutischen Nutzen von Musik legen bereits einige Studien, die deren Einfluss auf psychische und physiologische Parameter untersucht haben, nahe (Koelsch und Jäncke 2015 ; de Witte et al.…”