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Music supported therapy promotes motor plasticity in individuals with chronic stroke

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Abstract

Novel rehabilitation interventions have improved motor recovery by induction of neural plasticity in individuals with stroke. Of these, Music-supported therapy (MST) is based on music training designed to restore motor deficits. Music training requires multimodal processing, involving the integration and co-operation of visual, motor, auditory, affective and cognitive systems. The main objective of this study was to assess, in a group of 20 individuals suffering from chronic stroke, the motor, cognitive, emotional and neuroplastic effects of MST. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) we observed a clear restitution of both activity and connectivity among auditory-motor regions of the affected hemisphere. Importantly, no differences were observed in this functional network in a healthy control group, ruling out possible confounds such as repeated imaging testing. Moreover, this increase in activity and connectivity between auditory and motor regions was accompanied by a functional improvement of the paretic hand. The present results confirm MST as a viable intervention to improve motor function in chronic stroke individuals.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by la Fundació La Marató TV3 (Spain), the DFG and FPU program AP2010-4179 to P.R. We are particularly grateful to all the participants for being part of this study. We want to also thank Clara Medrano, Gemma Torres, Gonçalo Padrao, Laura Merino and Sabine Schneider for their help.

Author contributions

E.A., T.F.M. and A.R.F. designed research; N.R., J.L.A., J.G.S., M.J., L.V., F.R., E.D. and C.G. performed research; P.R., N.R., E.C. and J.M.P. analyzed data; P.R., N.R., E.C., J.M.P., J.L.A., J.G.S., L.V., E.A., T.F.M. and A.R.F wrote the manuscript.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group [Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute] IDIBELL, L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, 08097, Spain

      P. Ripollés, N. Rojo, J. Grau-Sánchez, J. L. Amengual, E. Càmara, J. Marco-Pallarés, L. Vaquero & A. Rodríguez-Fornells

    2. Department of Basic Psychology, Campus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona, L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, 08097, Spain

      P. Ripollés, N. Rojo, J. Grau-Sánchez, J. Marco-Pallarés & A. Rodríguez-Fornells

    3. Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge (HUB), Neurology Section, Campus Bellvitge, University of Barcelona - IDIBELL, L’Hospitalet, 08097, Barcelona, Spain

      M. Juncadella & F. Rubio

    4. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Parc de Salut Mar, Hospitals del Mar i de l’Esperança, Barcelona, Spain

      E. Duarte

    5. Radiology Unit., Hospital Clinic de Barcelona - IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain

      C. Garrido

    6. Institute of Music Physiology and Musicians’ Medicine, University of Music, Drama and Media Hannover, Hannover, Germany

      E. Altenmüller

    7. Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany

      T. F. Münte

    8. Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies, ICREA, Barcelona, Spain

      A. Rodríguez-Fornells

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    8. L. Vaquero
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    9. F. Rubio
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    13. T. F. Münte
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    14. A. Rodríguez-Fornells
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    Corresponding author

    Correspondence to A. Rodríguez-Fornells.

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    Conflict of interest

    Ripollés P, Rojo N, Grau-Sánchez J, Amengual JL, Camara E, Marco-Pallarés J, Juncadella M, Vaquero L, Rubio F, Duarte E, Garrido C, Altenmuller E, Münte TF and Rodríguez-Fornells A, declare no conflict of interest.

    Informed consent

    All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, and the applicable revisions at the time of the investigation. Informed consent was obtained from all patients for being included in the study.

    Additional information

    P. Ripollés and N. Rojo contributed equally to this work.

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    Ripollés, P., Rojo, N., Grau-Sánchez, J. et al. Music supported therapy promotes motor plasticity in individuals with chronic stroke. Brain Imaging and Behavior 10, 1289–1307 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11682-015-9498-x

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