Max J Hilz1, Peter Stadler2, Thomas Gryc2, Juliane Nath2, Leila Habib-Romstoeck2, Brigitte Stemper3, Susanne Buechner4, Samuel Wong5, Julia Koehn2. 1. Department of Neurology, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Schwabachanlage 6, 91054 Erlangen, Germany. Electronic address: max.hilz@uk-erlangen.de. 2. Department of Neurology, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Schwabachanlage 6, 91054 Erlangen, Germany. 3. Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Bayer Pharma AG, Müllerstr. 178, 13353 Berlin, Germany. 4. Department of Neurology, General Hospital of Bozen, Via Lorenz Boehler 5, 39100 Bozen, Italy. 5. Global Music Healing Institute, 67 Riverside Drive, Suite 8A, New York, NY 10024, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Autonomic arousal-responses to emotional stimuli change with age. Age-dependent autonomic responses to music-onset are undetermined. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether cardiovascular-autonomic responses to "relaxing" or "aggressive" music differ between young and older healthy listeners. METHODS: In ten young (22.8±1.7 years) and 10 older volunteers (61.7±7.7 years), we monitored respiration (RESP), RR-intervals (RRI), and systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BPsys, BPdia) during silence and 180second presentations of two "relaxing" and two "aggressive" classical-music excerpts. Between both groups, we compared RESP, RRI, BPs, spectral-powers of mainly sympathetic low-frequency (LF: 0.04-0.15Hz) and parasympathetic high-frequency (HF: 0.15-0.5Hz) RRI-oscillations, RRI-LF/HF-ratios, RRI-total-powers (TP-RRI), and BP-LF-powers during 30s of silence, 30s of music-onset, and the remaining 150s of music presentation (analysis-of-variance and post-hoc analysis; significance: p<0.05). RESULTS: During silence, both groups had similar RRI, LF/HF-ratios and LF-BPs; RESP, LF-RRI, HF-RRI, and TP-RRI were lower, but BPs were higher in older than younger participants. During music-onset, "relaxing" music decreased RRI in older and increased BPsys in younger participants, while "aggressive" music decreased RRI and increased BPsys, LF-RRI, LF/HF-ratios, and TP-RRI in older, but increased BPsys and RESP and decreased HF-RRI and TP-RRI in younger participants. Signals did not differ between groups during the last 150s of music presentation. CONCLUSIONS: During silence, autonomic modulation was lower - but showed sympathetic predominance - in older than younger persons. Responses to music-onset, particularly "aggressive" music, reflect more of an arousal- than an emotional-response to music valence, with age-specific shifts of sympathetic-parasympathetic balance mediated by parasympathetic withdrawal in younger and by sympathetic activation in older participants.
BACKGROUND: Autonomic arousal-responses to emotional stimuli change with age. Age-dependent autonomic responses to music-onset are undetermined. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether cardiovascular-autonomic responses to "relaxing" or "aggressive" music differ between young and older healthy listeners. METHODS: In ten young (22.8±1.7 years) and 10 older volunteers (61.7±7.7 years), we monitored respiration (RESP), RR-intervals (RRI), and systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BPsys, BPdia) during silence and 180second presentations of two "relaxing" and two "aggressive" classical-music excerpts. Between both groups, we compared RESP, RRI, BPs, spectral-powers of mainly sympathetic low-frequency (LF: 0.04-0.15Hz) and parasympathetic high-frequency (HF: 0.15-0.5Hz) RRI-oscillations, RRI-LF/HF-ratios, RRI-total-powers (TP-RRI), and BP-LF-powers during 30s of silence, 30s of music-onset, and the remaining 150s of music presentation (analysis-of-variance and post-hoc analysis; significance: p<0.05). RESULTS: During silence, both groups had similar RRI, LF/HF-ratios and LF-BPs; RESP, LF-RRI, HF-RRI, and TP-RRI were lower, but BPs were higher in older than younger participants. During music-onset, "relaxing" music decreased RRI in older and increased BPsys in younger participants, while "aggressive" music decreased RRI and increased BPsys, LF-RRI, LF/HF-ratios, and TP-RRI in older, but increased BPsys and RESP and decreased HF-RRI and TP-RRI in younger participants. Signals did not differ between groups during the last 150s of music presentation. CONCLUSIONS: During silence, autonomic modulation was lower - but showed sympathetic predominance - in older than younger persons. Responses to music-onset, particularly "aggressive" music, reflect more of an arousal- than an emotional-response to music valence, with age-specific shifts of sympathetic-parasympathetic balance mediated by parasympathetic withdrawal in younger and by sympathetic activation in older participants.
Authors: Alice Mado Proverbio; C A Alice Mado Proverbio; Valentina Lozano Nasi; Laura Alessandra Arcari; Francesco De Benedetto; Matteo Guardamagna; Martina Gazzola; Alberto Zani Journal: Sci Rep Date: 2015-10-15 Impact factor: 4.379
Authors: Max J Hilz; Mao Liu; Julia Koehn; Ruihao Wang; Fabian Ammon; Steven R Flanagan; Katharina M Hösl Journal: BMC Neurol Date: 2016-05-04 Impact factor: 2.474
Authors: Alice M Proverbio; Luigi Manfrin; Laura A Arcari; Francesco De Benedetto; Martina Gazzola; Matteo Guardamagna; Valentina Lozano Nasi; Alberto Zani Journal: Front Psychol Date: 2015-10-28