Patrick Jones Approximately 200 Words
INTD 105-19
November 2, 2016
In the article, “The Therapeutic Effects of Singing in Neurological Disorders”, Catherine Wan, Theodor Ruber, Anja Hohmann, and Gottfried Schlaug discuss the new research showing the positive effects of singing on patients suffering from neurological conditions. Recent studies show that singing strengthens the muscles associated with breathing, phonating, and articulating that allows stutterers gain cognitive function of their speech. The use of sustained vowel phonation during singing has also shown positive results on reducing the effects of Parkinson’s disease on speech. Singing has also shown positive effects on patients with Aphasia, a complication of a stroke that results in difficulty understanding and producing language, and autism. While singing, an individual uses both hemispheres of the brain and could result in structural adaptations in the brain that helps those suffering from aphasia and autism better understand language.
I have many friends perusing careers in the relatively new field of music therapy. Musical therapists would be the people who interact with the patients studied in the experiments mentioned within the article. The existence of this career proves there is a relationship between art and medicine, and it could be interesting to learn more about the research being done on the effects of the occupation.
I like your focus on the people who will be bringing this therapy to patients. It reminds me that technological and therapeutic advancements can benefit two groups of people, those who will be helped by the treatment itself, and those who will administer the treatments, perhaps finding a way to do something they love (in this case, music) in a setting that will allow them to provide for themselves.