New Delhi: A new clinical study conducted at Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC) and Lok Nayak Hospital, New Delhi, has found that playing gentle instrumental music during surgery can significantly reduce the need for anaesthetic drugs and improve patient recovery — even when patients are under general anaesthesia.
Published in the journal Music and Medicine, the study evaluated 56 adults undergoing laparoscopic gallbladder removal. All patients received standard anaesthesia, but only one group listened to calming flute or piano music through noise-cancelling headphones throughout the procedure. The other group wore identical headphones with no audio.
The findings showed that patients exposed to music required noticeably lower doses of anaesthesia. Propofol use dropped from an average of about 7.86 mg/kg/hour in the non-music group to 6.7 mg/kg/hour among those who listened to music. Fentanyl requirements were also reduced. Researchers also recorded more stable heart rates, steadier blood pressure, and lower cortisol levels — indicators of reduced physiological stress during surgery.
Postoperative outcomes were similarly encouraging. Patients in the music group woke up more calmly and displayed smoother, less agitated recovery patterns. According to the research team, this suggests that auditory pathways remain partially active under anaesthesia, allowing music to modulate emotional and autonomic responses even when patients are unconscious.
The authors highlight that music is a non-invasive, low-cost intervention that does not interfere with surgical workflow yet may offer meaningful benefits: lower drug usage, greater intraoperative stability, and improved patient experience. While the current sample size is modest, the study adds weight to a growing body of evidence supporting the integration of music therapy into operating rooms.
As healthcare systems look for practical strategies to enhance surgical care, the researchers note that something as simple as controlled, soothing music may hold significant promise for improving outcomes in modern surgical practice.