Effectiveness of Sound-Based Interventions for Improving Functional Outcomes in Children: A Systematic Review of the Evidence.
Vanessa Vincent, Gemma Skaczkowski, Donna Hughes-Barton and 1 others
PMID 40519630WHAT IT FOUND
Sound-based music therapies, including Safe and Sound Protocol, were reported to improve children's language, listening, behaviour and emotional regulation, but the evidence was small, mixed and too limited to prove benefit.
Key findings
01For Safe and Sound Protocol, the review found two single-case studies, both reporting improved emotional self-regulation, with one also reporting better language, listening and processing and the other reporting lower depression, stress, anxiety and fewer seizures.
02In randomised trials of filtered music or LPP, children showed some benefits compared with no music, but benefits were inconsistent compared with unfiltered music or age-matched controls.
03Therapeutic Listening was studied in 15 preschool children who also received their regular therapy regimes; several developmental measures improved, but sensory processing and problem behaviours did not, so the effect of Therapeutic Listening alone cannot be separated.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The review included only eight child studies, and the sample sizes ranged from one to 146 participants. Only two studies were randomised controlled trials; four were single-case studies, and the rest were pre-post designs with limited controls. The studies used different interventions, populations, outcome measures and assessment tools, so the findings could not be combined into one clear effect. Several outcomes relied on parent observation or individualised measures, and parental reports may reflect social support, expectation or routine rather than the filtered sound itself. In Therapeutic Listening, children received the protocol in addition to their regular therapy regimes, so the contribution of Therapeutic Listening alone cannot be separated. The search was limited to studies from 2010 onwards, and the Scopus search used only keywords, so some older or differently named studies may have been missed.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that Safe and Sound Protocol or similar sound-based music therapies are proven treatments for children's behavioural, emotional, auditory or functional difficulties. The review found only limited, inconsistent evidence, with four single-case studies, only two randomised trials, sample sizes from one to 146, and some benefits seen with unfiltered music or when added to regular therapy.