Gender Differences When Using Sedative Music During Colonoscopy.

Author: Björkman I, Karlsson F, Lundberg A, Frisman GH.
Affiliation: Ida Björkman, BSc, RN, is Registered Nurse, Department of Surgery, University Hospital, Linköping, Sweden. Frida Karlsson, BSc, RN, is Registered Nurse, Department of Cardiology, University Hospital, Linköping, Sweden. Ann Lundberg, EN, is Enrolled Nurse, Department of Gastroenterology, University Hospital, Linköping, Sweden. Gunilla Hollman Frisman, PhD, RNT, is Associate Professor, Department of Gastroenterology, University Hospital, and Senior Lecturer, Division of Nursing Sciences, Department of Medicine and Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden.
Conference/Journal: Gastroenterol Nurs.
Date published: 2013 Jan
Other: Volume ID: 36 , Issue ID: 1 , Pages: 14-20 , Word Count: 198



Colonoscopy is a procedure often experienced as uncomfortable and worrying. Music has been reported to reduce discomfort during colonoscopy; however, no study in a Swedish setting has been found. The purpose of this randomized controlled trial was to analyze the effects of sedative music on patients' experience of anxiety, pain, relaxation, and well-being during colonoscopy. Prior to colonoscopy, adult patients (n = 120), aged 18-80 years, were randomly assigned to either an intervention group (n = 60) who listened to sedative instrumental music with 60-80 beats per minute during the colonoscopy or a control group. After the colonoscopy, both groups completed a questionnaire on anxiety, the State Trait Anxiety Inventory, and an anxiety Visual Analogue Scale. Pain, relaxation, and well-being were also measured with Visual Analogue Scales. Women in the intervention group had a lower level of anxiety during the colonoscopy than those in the control group (p = .007) and well-being was significantly higher in the intervention group, especially among men, than in the controls (p = .006 and p = .025, respectively). Men in the intervention group were more relaxed during the colonoscopy than those in the control group (p = .065). Listening to sedative music decreased anxiety among women and increased well-being among men during colonoscopy.
PMID: 23364361