Metronome beat may improve brain function
by Danielle Wong Moores
Therapists at MCG Health System have adapted a music tool to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and other cognitive and physical difficulties.
The interactive metronome is a computer-based program in which patients slip on headphones and listen to auditory tones that mimic a metronome’s steady timing and rhythm. Then they are asked to perform a series of exercises where they clap or tap in time to the tones while wearing special gloves or standing on a special floor mat that records their responses. Guide tones alert the patient if his response was on time, early or late.
The goal is to train the patient to keep time with the metronome’s beat. But this simple action has been found to profoundly affect attention, coordination, control of aggression/impulsivity, motor control and coordination, and even reading, math and language processing.
“Studies have found that timing and rhythm play a basic role in the cognitive process,” said Beth Bishop, an occupational therapist at MCG Health System. She compares it to learning the ABCs. “You’re taught to write the letters over and over again, until the act of writing becomes an inherent motor response. In the same way, by guiding these patients through certain repetitive exercises, we can transform their brain function.”
The interactive metronome retrains the neural pathways to improve timing and synchronization, information processing, focus and concentration, learning and using both sides of the brain. Responding in sync to the metronome requires precise, consistent and efficient physical movement and coordination; planning and sequencing of mental processes; accurate recall; information organization; rapid processing; intense periods of focus, both for short and long durations, and maintenance of focus; and coordinated effort of the left and right sides of the body and brain.
The interactive metronome’s effects are cumulative and can help patients with ADHD/ADD and other learning disorders, autism, sensory integration disorder, cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and other degenerative diseases that affect the coordination of brain and muscles.
To make an appointment, contact the MCG Department of Occupational Therapy and Rehabilitation at ext. 1-2481.