Name:Isabella Sterner

School/Affiliation:Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Co-Authors:Kyurim Kang, Ph.D., LPMT, MT-BC, NMT (Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine), Sarah Kelley, M.D. (Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine), Alexander Testino, M.D. (Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine), Alexander Pantelyat, M.D., FAAN (Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine)

Virtual or In-person:In-person

Short Bio:

Isabella currently serves as the clinical research coordinator at the Center for Music and Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine where she supports several studies investigating music therapy and music-based interventions for neurological conditions including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, corticobasal syndrome, and pediatric epilepsy. A lover of music, learning, and cognitive science, she hopes to continue research in music and the mind as a neuroscience/psychology PhD student in the coming year.

Abstract:

Current research suggests that Mozart’s Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major (K.448) can reduce epileptiform discharges and seizure frequency in children with epilepsy. While promising, past protocols are heterogeneous, and within-study comparisons to other music stimuli remain unexplored. Our pilot study aimed to examine whether exposure to Mozart K.448 or patient-selected preferred music altered epileptiform activity and clinical seizure frequency in children (ages 4–17) admitted to our Pediatric Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU). During their EMU stay (2-7 days, M=3.30), patients (N=10, 5 females, age (M±SD)=10.42±2.81) listened daily to Mozart K.448 and a time-matched instrumental mix of preferred music (~8.5 minutes each) via earbuds in a randomized order, with a ten-minute washout period in between. Continuous video-EEG captured epileptiform discharges and clinical seizures, while a pulse-oximeter monitored heart rate/heart rate variability throughout the session, including ten-minute pre- and post-music resting-state recordings. Exploratory behavioral measures were also collected. Preliminary data from N=4 participants were usable (excluded N=1 for altered patient mental status, N=2 for artifacts, and N=3 for negligible spiking). Spike-wave index (seconds with spikes/total time) showed minimal change from baseline across conditions (Δpre-Mozart (M±SD)=0.008±0.04; Δpre-preferred 0.03±0.03; Δpre-post 0.009±0.04). Average heart rate also remained largely stable across conditions (Δpre-Mozart –3.19±6.13; Δpre-preferred –6.13±3.38; Δpre-post –2.56±7.85) with no significant differences detected (Kruskal-Wallis test, all p >.05). Although no condition-level effects were observed in this small preliminary sample, this pilot demonstrates the feasibility of implementing structured music protocols in the pediatric EMU setting. Ongoing analyses of preferred-music features (e.g., tempo, style), along with continued participant recruitment, are expected to provide deeper insights into potential individualized effects of music in pediatric epilepsy.