Music Modulates Autonomic Nervous System Activity in Human Fetuses
Author: Francesca Massimello1, Lucia Billeci2, Alessio Canu1, Maria Magdalena Montt-Guevara1, Gaia Impastato1, Maurizio Varanini2, Andrea Giannini1, Tommaso Simoncini1, Paolo Mannella1
Affiliation:
1 Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
2 Institute of Clinical Physiology, National Research Council of Italy (CNR-IFC), Pisa, Italy.
Conference/Journal: Front Med (Lausanne)
Date published: 2022 Apr 14
Other:
Volume ID: 9 , Pages: 857591 , Special Notes: doi: 10.3389/fmed.2022.857591. , Word Count: 305
Context:
Fetal Autonomic Nervous sysTem Evaluation (FANTE) is a non-invasive tool that evaluates the autonomic nervous system activity in a fetus. Autonomic nervous system maturation and development during prenatal life are pivotal for the survival and neuropsychiatric development of the baby.
Objective:
Aim of the study is to evaluate the effect of music stimulation on fetal heart rate and specific parameters linked to ANS activity, in particular fetal heart rate variability.
Methods:
Thirty-two women between the 32nd and 38th week with a singleton uncomplicated pregnancy were recruited. All FANTE data collections were acquired using a 10-derivation electrocardiograph placed on the maternal abdomen. In each session (5 min basal, 10 min with music stimulus, and 5 min post-stimulus), FANTE was registered. The music stimulus was "Clair de lune" Debussy, played through headphones on the mother's abdomen (CTR: 31927).
Results:
Music does not change the mean value of fetal heart rate. However, indices of total fetal heart rate variability statistically increase (RRsd p = 0.037, ANNsd p = 0.039, SD2 p = 0.019) during music stimulation in comparison to the basal phase. Heart rate variability increase depends mainly on the activation of parasympathetic branches (CVI p = 0.013), meanwhile, no significant changes from basal to stimulation phase were observed for indices of sympathetic activity. All the parameters of heart rate variability and parasympathetic activity remained activated in the post-stimulus phase compared to the stimulus phase. In the post-stimulus phase, sympathetic activity resulted in a significant reduction (LFn p = 0.037).
Conclusion:
Music can influence the basal activity of the fetal autonomic nervous system, enhancing heart rate variability, without changing fetal heart rate mean value. Music is enabled to induce a relaxation state in a near-to-term fetus, mediated by parasympathetic activation and by a parallel sympathetic inhibition.
Keywords: autonomic nervous system evaluation; fetal autonomic nervous system; fetal nervous system; heart rate variability (HRV); musical stimulation; non-invasive evaluation.
PMID: 35492323 PMCID: PMC9046697 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2022.857591
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