Music therapy for children with Rett syndrome.

The Rett syndrome is good reactivity for sound and music. We enforced active music therapy (MT) individual session to patients with Rett syndrome. The patients were 4, 5 and 6-year-old. The active music therapy and individual session of 30 min/week were performed. It was recorded in video and description, and using the original evaluation list, six items of fact. On largest problem that is hand operation with purpose in childhood of Rett syndrome, we recorded the longest duration and frequency of hand grasping time in one session. There was the improvement of 35.0% of listening music, 33.3% play music, 13.3% singing music, 11.7% minute motion, 11.7% language, and 20.0% personal relation and sociality. The longest duration of hand grasping time was improved from 2 to 12 s in case 2 and from 7 to 80 s in case 3. Grasp frequency which showed the volition rapidly increased from 3 to 41 times, though the elongation for the duration of grasping was little for case 2. Rett syndrome is the disease in which the psychomotor performance regresses with the age, but the aspect that surely developed in the session could be evaluated. Rett syndrome has the ability understanding the music, and music therapy is suitable for them.