Family-centered music therapy-Empowering premature infants and their primary caregivers through music: Results of a pilot study.

This pilot study suggests that a live-improvised interactive music therapy intervention for extremely and very preterm infants and their parents may have a beneficial effect on the therapy duration needed for premature infants before discharge from hospital is possible. The study identified components of the original physiological variables of the infants as appropriate endpoints and suggested a slight change in study design to capture possible effects of music therapy on infants' development as well. Further studies should assess both short-term and long-term effects on premature infants as well as on maternal and paternal health outcomes, to determine whether a family-centered music therapy, actually experienced as an added value to developmental care, should be part of routine care at the NICU.