Effects of Music Intervention during Cesarean Section on the Level of the Mother’s Anxiety: A Randomized Controlled Study

Background: Anxiety is commonly experienced during the delivery process and has been shown to have adverse effects on maternal and infant health outcomes. Music interventions tend to mitigate the effects of anxiety in a variety of populations, are low-cost and easily accessible, and have high acceptability. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of music intervention on expectant mothers’ vital signs and anxiety levels during cesarean section. Methods: This study is a single-center, controlled, randomized study. The women in the intervention group listened to music via earpieces during the operation. The control group received standard treatment without music. Cesarean section was performed under regional anesthesia. The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) was administered to the patients before and after the operation. Results: There was no significant difference between the pre- and postoperative systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, or O2 saturation parameters of the music group and the control group (p>0.05). The pre-operative STAI anxiety score was similar in the music (45.58±4.60) and control (43.82±4.33) groups (p=0.183). After the operation, the anxiety score of the music group (35.88±5.39) was found to be statistically significantly lower than the anxiety score of the control group (42.14±3.75) (p<0.001). Conclusion: This study supports the hypothesis that slow, rhythmic Sufi music during cesarean section can reduce patients’ anxiety. It is possible to distract the patient from negative thoughts and reduce stress. The results show that patients who listened to music during surgery had significantly lower anxiety levels than patients who did not listen to music.