Music, Disorders of Consciousness and heart/brain two-way interaction in severe brain injured patient

Activations to pleasant and unpleasant musical stimuli were observed within an extensive neuronal network and different brain structures, as well as in the processing of the syntactic and semantic aspects of the music. The complexity of musical sample was described by Formal Complexity and General Dynamics parameters defined by Imberty’s semiology studies.
Studies evidenced a correlation between autonomic activity and emotion evoked by music listening in patients with Disorders of Consciousness (DoC).
The measures of heart rate variability (HRV) are thought to indirectly reflect these activities and interaction. Integrative models equate HRV to autonomic nervous system outputs, with HRV reflecting affective, physiological, “cognitive,” and behavioural elements and homeostatic responses. HRV provides tools for the evaluation of responsiveness in DoC and it has proved reliable in physiological research in the absence of conscious behaviour.
Studies results put in evidence how the internal structure of the music can change the autonomic response in patients with DoC. Further investigations are required to better comprehend how musical stimulation can modify the autonomic response in DoC patients, in order to administer the stimuli in a more effective way.