MEDtube Science 2014 - The use of music therapy in reducing the level of anxiety in dentistry – the current state of research – (Part I)

Background: The article presents the current state of research on the use of music therapy in dentistry. The author has conducted a systematic review of the available publications concerning the therapeutic effects of music on reducing the level of fear in dental patients. Due to the relatively recent interest in applying music therapy to dental environments, the number of publications on the subject is limited. Material and Methods: The systematic review has been conducted on the basis of three electronic databases: PubMed.gov, thecochranelibrary.com, ebscohost.com and on the basis of Polish Medical Bibliography GBL, and the database of Medical Library CMUJ: www.bm.cm-uj.krakow.pl. Results: The researchers, whose works have been reviewed, have used music therapy methods in conservative dentistry, endodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, oral surgery in both adults and children. Mainly, receptive therapy was used, with the application of various musical genres, including “white noise”. Therapy results were measured with standard tools and also individual scales assessing the levels of anxiety. Due to a variety of methodologies used, different ways of analyzing the results and divergent approaches to the concept of music therapy, there is no possibility of a direct comparison between them. This situation has also been observed by other authors. Conclusion: There is a need for a systematic approach towards both methodologies used in music therapy research and evaluation of their effectiveness. In order to facilitate the use of music therapy by a larger number of dental professionals, there is a need for preparing a consistent and clear methodology of its application and verification of its results.