Music Therapy for Preoperative Anxiety in Surgical Patients: An Integrative Review

This integrative review compared the use of music interventions on the effects of preoperative anxiety in surgical patients. Preoperative anxiety can have detrimental effects such as increased blood pressure, increased heart rate, increased cortisol levels, increased infection risk, and delayed wound healing. Anesthetic complications include autonomic fluctuations, increased anesthetic requirements, tightening of the jaw, and possible coughing on induction of anesthesia. A search was completed using electronic databases including CINAHL, PubMed, and Medline. The PRISMA flowchart was utilized to identify research that was included and excluded in the review, with a final total of 10 studies. Studies were critically appraised using Polit and Beck’s analysis tables and illustrated in individual tables identifying key aspects of the study. Outcomes included anxiety levels, vital signs, patient satisfaction including positive and negative emotions, length of procedure, and amount of medications used intraoperatively. Findings showed an overall decrease in anxiety levels when patients were exposed to some type of music intervention. Music interventions, including both live and prerecorded music, have been shown to have a positive impact on anxiety levels. Overall, this integrative review supported the use of music interventions as a safe, low-cost technique to help ease anxiety of patients awaiting surgery