Memory for music and Alzheimer’s Disease. Case report
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56294/saludcyt202292Keywords:
Alzheimer’s Disease, Memory, MusicAbstract
It is increasingly described that memory for music is preserved in people living with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). This article illustrates a case example of well-preserved memory for music in one non musician adult with AD at its moderate to advanced stage. During the four-year course of adapted music lessons he displayed an outstanding and increasing ability to learn new songs over time, despite his overall deterioration deepened due to the progress of the disease. Addressing the question if adults in late stages of AD are able to learn and recall new musical material, this case is relevant given the novel findings seen during this course of work, which can have implications in treatment planning, intervention design and to further explore the mechanisms of memory for music particularly in AD
References
1. Alzheimer’s Association. What Is Alzheimer’s? [Internet]. Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia. Alzheimer’s Association; 2022. Available from: https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/what-is-alzheimers
2. Alzheimer’s Disease International. World Alzheimer Report 2019: Attitudes to dementia. London; 2019.
3. Beatty WW, Zavadil K, Bailly RC, Rixen GJ, Zavadil LE, Farnham N, Fischer LC. Preserved musical skill in a severely demented patient. The International journal of clinical neuropsychology. 1988; 10, 158-164.
4. Crystal HA, Grober E, Masur D. Preservation of musical memory in Alzheimer’s disease. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry. 1989;52(12):1415–6. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jnnp.52.12.1415
5. Cuddy LL, Duffin J. Music, memory, and Alzheimer’s disease: is music recognition spared in dementia, and how can it be assessed? Medical Hypotheses. 2005;64(2):229–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2004.09.005
6. Cuddy LL, Sikka R, Vanstone A. Preservation of musical memory and engagement in healthy aging and Alzheimer’s disease. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 2015;1337(1):223–31. https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.12617
7. Groussard M, Chan TG, Coppalle R, Platel H. Preservation of Musical Memory Throughout the Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease? Toward a Reconciliation of Theoretical, Clinical, and Neuroimaging Evidence. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease. 2019;68(3):857-83. https://doi.org/10.3233/jad-180474
8. Vanstone AD, Cuddy LL. Musical Memory in Alzheimer Disease. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition. 2009;17(1):108–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/13825580903042676
9. Baird A, Umbach H, Thompson WF. A nonmusician with severe Alzheimer’s dementia learns a new song. Neurocase. 2017;23(1):36-40. https://doi.org/10.1080/13554794.2017.1287278
10. Fraile E, Bernon D, Rouch I, Pongan E, Tillmann B, Lévêque Y. The effect of learning an individualized song on autobiographical memory recall in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease: A pilot study. Journal of clinical and experimental neuropsychology. 2019;41(7):760-8. https://doi.org/10.1080/13803395.2019.1617837
11. Folstein MF, Folstein SE, McHugh PR. Mini-mental state. Journal of Psychiatric Research. 1975;12(3):189-98. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-3956(75)90026-6
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Marcela Lichtensztejn (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The article is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. Unless otherwise stated, associated published material is distributed under the same licence.
