The effect of music therapy on pain fatigue anxiety and pruritus symptoms in hemodialysis patients

Music is used to palliate many symptoms in patients with various chronic and progressive diseases. The aim of this study was to identify the influence of music therapy on the symptoms of pain, fatigue, anxiety and pruritus of hemodialysis (HD) patients. The sample of the study consisted of a total of 34 patients, were treated in hemodialysis unit of Gaziantep University Hospital between April - September 2017. Permission was obtained from the ethics committee. Patient Information Form and VAS (Visual Analog Scale) to assess the symptoms of pain, fatigue, anxiety and pruritus during hemodialysis session were used. Patients' heart rate and systolic and diastolic blood pressures were recorded before and after hemodialysis treatment. The patients listened to live Turkish art music for 30 minutes. In the evaluation of the data, frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation statistics. The groups were compared with each other through running the independent-sample t, and the Chi-square tests. The level of significance was considered to be less than 0.05. According to the results of this study, live Turkish music presented with Kaval reduces the symptoms of pain, fatigue, anxiety and pruritus of the patients receiving hemodialysis treatment. According to these results, music therapy can be suggested for reducing pain, fatigue, anxiety and pruritus in hemodialysis patients. Key words: Pain, anxiety, hemodialysis, itching, music therapy, fatigue