Music Listening for Bed Sores

Not yet recruiting at 10 trial locations

Overseen By Sinead George

Age: 18+

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: McMaster University

Disqualifiers: End of life, Infected wounds, Necrotic tissue, Hearing loss, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 2

Duration: Up to 6 months

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial aims to determine if listening to music during wound care can ease pain, improve healing, and enhance the experience for older adults with bed sores. Researchers will compare care with music to care without music to assess its impact. The trial takes place in Ontario care homes, where participants will listen to their favorite music before and during wound care. The study seeks residents aged 60 and older with stage II, III, or IV bed sores who already receive regular wound care. As an unphased trial, it offers participants the opportunity to contribute to innovative care practices that could enhance quality of life.

What prior data suggests that music listening is safe for older adults with pressure injuries?

Research has shown that listening to music during medical procedures is safe and can help reduce pain. For example, one study found that music therapy eased pain for patients during bandage changes in intensive care. Another study demonstrated that music helped lower pain and anxiety during emergency stitches. Additionally, a small study noted that listening to music during bandage changes led to smaller changes in blood pressure and heart rate, although these results were not statistically significant. These studies suggest that music is generally well-tolerated and has few, if any, negative effects. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Unlike standard treatments for bed sores, such as topical creams and wound dressings, the music listening intervention offers a completely different approach by incorporating personalized music playlists into the care routine. This method is unique because it aims to harness the power of music to potentially enhance the healing environment and improve patient comfort during wound care. Researchers are excited about this trial as it explores the psychological and physiological benefits of music, which could offer a non-invasive, cost-effective complement to existing treatments.

What evidence suggests that music listening is effective for pressure injuries?

Research has shown that music therapy can reduce pain and improve healing in people with chronic wounds. One study found that music therapy made dressing changes less painful for patients with pressure injuries. Another study discovered that music therapy can speed up healing and enhance the overall wound care experience. Music therapy also reduces anxiety and stress, which can be beneficial during uncomfortable medical procedures like wound care. In this trial, participants in the music intervention arm will listen to personalized playlists during their wound care. Overall, evidence suggests that listening to music during wound care may help manage pain and improve the healing experience for patients with pressure injuries. ^{6 7 8 9 10}

Who Is on the Research Team?

Chelsea Mackinnon

Principal Investigator

McMaster University

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

Inclusion Criteria

I am 60 years old or older.

I have a stage II, III, or IV pressure injury.

Exclusion Criteria

The pressure injury is caused by a medical device in that area

Severe to profound hearing loss that is not corrected by a hearing aid or other assistive hearing device.

I have a pressure injury that cannot be staged.

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Treatment

Participants receive wound care with or without music intervention

Up to 6 months

Weekly or every 2-3 days, depending on the participant

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for pain, wound healing, and overall wound care experience

4 weeks

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• Music Listening

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: Music intervention arm Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Participants in this group will have their personalized playlists (i.e., based on their musical preferences) played for them \~15 minutes before and during their standard wound care. The participants can adjust the volume and/or pause the music at any time.

Group II: Control arm Active Control 1 Intervention

Participants in this group will receive standard wound care.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

McMaster University

Lead Sponsor

Trials

936

Recruited

2,630,000+

Kindera Living

Collaborator

Room 217 Foundation

Collaborator

Queen's University

Collaborator

Trials

382

Recruited

122,000+

Citations

1.

news.uhhospitals.org

news.uhhospitals.org/news-releases/articles/2025/09/large-study-finds-certain-music-therapy-interventions-may-be-more-beneficial-for-pain

Large Study Finds Certain Music Therapy Interventions May ...

This investigation required curating the largest dataset of medical music therapy practice ever assembled – a process that involved extracting ...

2.

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12202193/

Impact of Music Therapy on Patients in the Critical Care Unit

This study delves into music therapy as a promising intervention that alleviates stress, fosters emotional expression and enhances patients' quality of life.

3.

researchgate.net

researchgate.net/publication/394071917_Effect_of_Music_Therapy_on_Dressing_Pain_in_Intensive_Care_Patients_With_Pressure_Injury

Effect of Music Therapy on Dressing Pain in Intensive Care ...

Music therapy was more effective in improving psychological outcomes than physiological outcomes. However, additional high-quality studies related to music ...

4.

journals.lww.com

journals.lww.com/nohe/fulltext/2025/11000/effect_of_music_therapy_integrated_with_ortcc.25.aspx

Effect of Music Therapy Integrated with ORTCC Model ...

This technique effectively prevents infections, reduces pain intensity, enhances healing outcomes across diverse chronic wound types and accelerates patient ...

5.

scispace.com

scispace.com/pdf/effect-of-music-therapy-as-an-adjunct-in-management-of-17efpi4j87.pdf

effect-of-music-therapy-as-an-adjunct-in-management-of- ...

Slight de- crease in blood pressure and pulse rate was noted when debride- ment and dressings were done with music therapy (Tables 1 and 2).

6.

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40719451/

Effect of Music Therapy on Dressing Pain in Intensive Care ...

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of music therapy on dressing pain in unconscious intensive care patients with ...

7.

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12886440/

The impact of music intervention during emergency suturing ...

This meta-analysis provides evidence that music intervention during emergency suturing effectively reduces pain and may decrease anxiety in ...

8.

clinicaltrials.gov

clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07369258

Clinical Application of Listening to Music to Prevent ...

This study aims to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of a structured music listening intervention as a preventive strategy in older ICU ...

9.

patientcarelink.org

patientcarelink.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/2017-hapu_change_package_508.pdf

Preventing Hospital Acquired Pressure Ulcers/Injuries ...

The purpose of this change package is to spread best practices in the prevention of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers/ injuries. Outcome data submission should ...

10.

openriver.winona.edu

openriver.winona.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1397&context=nursingmasters

Music Intervention and its Effect on State Anxiety - OpenRiver

The literature around music intervention in the ICU population was extensive related to the various article descriptions for music intervention ...