Authors: Eppinger U
Medscape UK, July 30, 2025
This report highlights the expanding role of music therapy in clinical medicine, particularly in Germany, where it is included in 37 national clinical guidelines and endorsed for dementia symptom management. Evidence has grown substantially since 1996, with nearly 9000 PubMed-indexed articles, including 1500 randomized controlled trials and 360 systematic reviews/meta-analyses.
Music therapy demonstrates benefits across multiple conditions. In Parkinson’s disease, dance therapies such as tango improve balance and coordination, while choral singing reduces depression in dementia patients. In stroke recovery, music-based interventions aid speech rehabilitation. A meta-analysis of arts-based interventions reported small-to-moderate effects in neurologic disorders (SMD 0.40) and moderate effects in cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, and mental illness.
Clinical applications extend to cancer care, where music therapy alleviates anxiety, depression, fatigue, and pain, showing effects comparable to cognitive-behavioral therapy. In palliative care, it promotes relaxation and well-being with low dropout rates. Among newborns and premature infants, music therapy improves physiologic stability, supports neurodevelopment, and enhances parent-child bonding. It also serves adolescents and trauma-exposed individuals by facilitating nonverbal expression.
Despite strong evidence and inpatient integration, outpatient access remains limited in Germany due to lack of insurance coverage. Experts stress the need for systemic policy changes to ensure equitable access across care settings.
What You Should Know
• Music therapy improves neurologic, oncologic, psychiatric, and neonatal outcomes with evidence from hundreds of RCTs and systematic reviews.
• Effects are comparable to opioids in pain management and to CBT in anxiety/depression.
• Benefits extend to vulnerable groups, including premature infants and trauma-exposed youth.
• Despite guideline endorsements, outpatient access remains restricted due to insurance barriers.
• Calls continue for music therapy to be established as a reimbursable outpatient service in Germany.
References
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Garcia-Gil M, Fuentes-Garcia JP, Ponce-Bordon JC, et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021, 18:7166. doi:10.3390/ijerph18137166
Wahbeh H, Elsas SM, Oken BS. J Altern Complement Med. 2008, 14:1147-1157. doi:10.1089/acm.2007.0750
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