Safety
Bonoit Mojan, a 19th century physician, believed music should be avoided with
a headache, earache, or excessive excitability.
Birth:
Infants at risk for hearing loss, including pre-term infants with congenital
viral infections, hyperbilirubinemia, prenatal asphyxia, low birth weight,
family history of hearing loss before age 50, and birth trauma, as well as
those exposed to ototoxic drugs, may have increased risk or hearing loss with
music therapy.
Dementia:
In people with dementia (or anyone for that matter), it is important to use
caution in the type of music used. Surprisingly, there have been some
reports of increased agitation and increased outburst when bagpipe music is used
in those with dementia.
Certain
Brain Lesions:
Lesions in the right temporal lobe (in left hemispheric dominant patients) may
occasionally result in pain due to listening to music. (O'Callaghan 1996) Importance of patient
preference: It is always important to use the type
of music the patient prefers. Based on the initial interview, it is easy
to find out what the patient likes and dislikes. There have been reports
of veterens who are actually saddened and feel worse after listening to
patriotic music; a fact most of the general public would be surprised by.
There has even been a report of a woman who was deeply saddened by the playing
of a waltz because it reminded her of the days she spent in a concentration
camp. It is important to use the preferences of the patient! |