The Effect of Different Auditory Stimuli on Vital Signs and Consciousness Level in Intensive Care Patients: Music, Nature-Based Sound and Voices of Patients' Relatives.
Meltem Şirin Gök, Reva Balci Akpinar
PMID 40789296WHAT IT FOUND
After 30-minute ICU sessions, heart rate fell with music and nature sounds and rose with relatives' voices.
Consciousness scores rose after each, but blood pressure did not change significantly.
Key findings
01After 30-minute sessions, music and nature-based sounds were followed by lower heart rate and higher Glasgow Coma Scale scores, but blood pressure and respiratory rate did not show significant differences.
02Relatives' voices were followed by higher heart rate, higher respiratory rate, and higher Glasgow Coma Scale scores, but blood pressure did not show significant differences.
03For patients with Glasgow Coma Scale scores of 8 to 12, music and nature sounds showed lower heart rate, while relatives' voices showed higher heart rate and respiratory rate.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was single-centre in Türkiye, so results may not transfer to other ICUs or cultures. Only 43 patients completed the study after 51 were recruited, and some were excluded because they died, relatives withdrew consent, or they reacted strongly to sound. Music was one Turkish segah piece, and patient music preference was not assessed, so responses may not generalise. Patients and researchers were not blinded to the sound being delivered; only the statistician was blinded. Pain was not measured, although pain can affect vital signs and consciousness. The analysis reported within-group changes; it did not directly compare whether one stimulus was better than another or whether changes were beyond time or environment. The paper did not name a primary outcome.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the heart rate and consciousness changes as proof that one sound is clinically superior or that it caused lasting recovery. The study measured within-group changes, patients and researchers knew the sound, and the paper did not name a primary outcome.