Intentional music listening to support emotional recovery after stroke

Is this trial a fit for you?

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

This randomized, parallel-group feasibility trial compares a 4-week at-home intentional music listening program to audiobook listening in people with chronic stroke. Participants complete a 4-week pre-intervention period, then are randomized to one hour of daily listening for four weeks with all listening tracked using custom open-source software. Researchers collect mood questionnaires, cognitive tests, and multimodal biomarkers (functional and structural MRI, electrodermal activity, and heart rate) at baseline, post-intervention, and three-month follow-up. The primary focus is feasibility (retention, adherence, fidelity, acceptability, and burden) with secondary outcomes including recruitment and randomization rates.

Why it matters

Who can join: the full rules

Inclusion Criteria:

* Participants aged 50 to 90
* Confirmed diagnosis of ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke occurring at least six months prior to enrollment.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Significant hearing loss, defined by a score \>26 on the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly Screening (HHIE-S; Ventry and Weinstein, 1982)
* Contraindications for MRI
* Significant cognitive impairment, defined as a Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA; Nasreddine et al., 2005) score below 22 (unless the lower score is attributable to expressive aphasia)
* Specific musical anhedonia, defined as a score below 60 on the Barcelona Music Reward Questionnaire (BMRQ; Mas-Herrero et al., 2013)
* Amusia, defined as a score below 70% on the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia (MBEA; Peretz et al., 2003).
* Participants will not be excluded if currently taking medications that may affect brain function (e.g., antidepressants) or if engaged in other complementary therapies (e.g., mindfulness, yoga). Participants will be allowed to initiate new medications or therapies during the study period.

Where it's running

• New York University
  New York, New York, United States Recruiting

Study contacts

• Principal investigator: Pablo Ripolles, PhD — New York University
• Study coordinator: Pablo Ripolles, PhD
• Email: pripolles@nyu.edu
• Phone: + 1212-998-5424

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How to take part

1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.