Music as an Adjunctive Epileptic Seizure Treatment Option

Mozart's Sonata for two pianos in D major (K448) has been found to reduce the presence of abnormalities in the electroencephalograms of patients with epilepsy. We will examine the long term effects of listening to the K448 sonata on seizure frequency and cognitive functioning in children with drug resistant epilepsy allocated to either a study group or a control group. Patients' parents will complete a seizure diary for the whole study period, during which antiepileptic drug therapy of the child will remain unchanged. Baseline neuropsychological testing will be performed and a seizure diary will be kept for 3 months. The study group will listen to K448 for 8 continuous minutes every day for 2 months, while those in the control group will listen to control music for the same amount of time. Neuropsychological testing will be repeated at the end of the study period and any change from baseline examined. Seizure frequency during periods of exposure to music will be compared to baseline in both groups. Feedback questionnaires and parent focus groups will be used to gather information around the practicalities of exposure to music, potential problems and suggestions for how future studies might be improved.