The Effectiveness Of Music Therapy On Depression In The Elderly; A Meta-Analysis
Keywords:
Music Therapy, Depression, Elderly, Meta-AnalysisAbstract
Depression is one of the most common mental disorders experienced by the elderly. One of the popular non-pharmacological approaches is music therapy. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of music therapy in reducing depression levels in the elderly based on recent studies. A meta-analysis was conducted on 17 studies, with a quantitative focus on the 3 main studies that had complete data. The analysis used SMD and CI estimation. Visualization of results was presented through forest plot.Three studies showed a reduction in depression scores with SMD ranging from - 0.66 to -0.75. These results indicated moderate to large effects of music therapy. Heterogeneity was high (I² > 75%).Music therapy is effective as a non-pharmacological intervention in reducing depressive symptoms in the elderly and can be integrated in elderly health services.
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