Systematic review and meta-analysis reveals improved motor and functional outcomes in stroke patients, indicating music is an effective rehabilitation adjunct.
Key Points
To systematically evaluate the impact of music-based interventions on rehabilitation outcomes in patients recovering from stroke.
Searched 11 electronic databases from inception through April 7, 2026, for randomized controlled trials comparing music-based interventions plus conventional rehabilitation against conventional rehabilitation alone.
Identified and analyzed 21 randomized controlled trials involving a total of 1,029 patients with stroke using Review Manager (RevMan) 5.4.
Music-based interventions significantly improved lower limb motor function [SMD = 0.99, 95% CI (0.59, 1.39), p < 0.001], upper limb motor function [SMD = 0.58, 95% CI (0.26, 0.91), p = 0.0004], and balance [SMD = 0.45, 95% CI (0.17, 0.74), p = 0.002].
Interventions produced significant enhancements in gait speed [SMD = 0.89, 95% CI (0.16, 1.62), p = 0.02], activities of daily living [SMD = 0.88, 95% CI (0.68, 1.08), p < 0.001], and quality of life [SMD = 0.31, 95% CI (0.13, 0.49), p = 0.0009].