NCT03674931

Train the Brain With Music: Brain Plasticity and Cognitive Benefits Induced by Musical Practice in Elderly People

Train the Brain With Music: Brain Plasticity and Cognitive Benefits Induced by Musical Practice in Elderly People in Germany and Switzerland

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 150 (actual)
• Sponsor: School of Health Sciences Geneva · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 64 Years – 76 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This longitudinal study aims to countervail age-related cognitive and cerebral decline in healthy retired people through intensive piano / keyboard music practice in Switzerland and Germany.

Detailed description

Recent data suggest that music making might prevent cognitive decline in the elderly. However, experimental evidence remains sparse and no information on the neurophysiological basis has been provided, although cognitive decline is a major impediment to healthy aging. This study combines for the first time protocolled music practice in elderly with cutting-edge neuroimaging. The investigators propose a multi-site Hannover-Geneva longitudinal randomized intervention study in altogether 100 retired healthy elderly (64-76) years, 70 Geneva, 100 Hannover), offering either piano instruction or instruction on musical culture for one year. Participants will be tested at 3 time points on cognitive, perceptual and motor abilities as well as via wide-ranging functional and structural neuroimaging data (Magnetic Resonance Imaging, MRI). The research team expects positive transfer effects from intensive piano training not only on subjective well-being, but also on executive functions, working memory, hearing in noise and relationships of these behavioral features with morphological and functional brain plasticity. This study may therefore for the first time be demonstrate, that music making can provoke important societal impacts by diminishing cognitive and perceptual-motor decline underpinned by functional and structural brain plasticity.

Conditions

• Age-related Cognitive Decline

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	musical practice	Intensive weekly musical keyboard training over 12 months
BEHAVIORAL	music education	Recreative weekly musical courses without practice over 12 months

Timeline

• Start date: 2018-04-01
• Primary completion: 2021-07-31
• Completion: 2021-07-31
• First posted: 2018-09-18
• Last updated: 2022-05-11

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Switzerland