fMRI shows how music activates brain regions untouched by Alzheimer's
Using functional MRI (fMRI), researchers at the University of Utah Health found that music activates regions of the brain spared from memory loss caused by Alzheimer's disease. According to an April 27 university release, the researchers are using their findings to develop music therapy to help alleviate emotional distress in patients with dementia.
The research was published in the April online issue of The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease.
The study aimed to examine how music activates the attentional network in the salience region of the brain responsible for memory, explained contributing study author Jeff Anderson, MD, PhD, an associate professor in radiology at the University of Utah Health.
"In our society, the diagnoses of dementia are snowballing and are taxing resources to the max," Anderson said in a prepared statement. "No one says playing music will be a cure for Alzheimer's disease, but it might make the symptoms more manageable, decrease the cost of care and improve a patient's quality of life.
Anderson and his colleagues used fMRI to scan 17 dementia patients to analyze regions of the brain that were activated when listening to eight 20-second clips of music compared to silence, according to the press release.
The researchers found in all participants that whole regions of the brain communicated with each other when they listened to music. Specifically, the visual, salience and executive networks and the cerebellar and corticocerebellar networks performed with higher functional connectivity with music than without.
"This is objective evidence from brain imaging that shows personally meaningful music is an alternative route for communicating with patients who have Alzheimer's disease," said senior author Norman Foster, MD, director of the Center for Alzheimer's Care at the University of Utah Health, in a prepared statement. "Language and visual memory pathways are damaged early as the disease progresses, but personalized music programs can activate the brain, especially for patients who are losing contact with their environment."
A recent graduate from Dominican University (IL) with a bachelor’s in journalism, Melissa joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering all aspects of health imaging. She’s a fan of singing and playing guitar, elephants, a good cup of tea, and her golden retriever Cooper.