Audioanalgesia (or audio-analgesia) is the relief of

pain Pain is a distressing feeling often caused by intense or damaging stimuli. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, ...

(

analgesia Pain management is an aspect of medicine and health care involving relief of pain (pain relief, analgesia, pain control) in various dimensions, from acute and simple to chronic and challenging. Most physicians and other health professionals ...

) using

white noise In signal processing, white noise is a random signal having equal intensity at different frequencies, giving it a constant power spectral density. The term is used, with this or similar meanings, in many scientific and technical disciplines, ...

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

(that is, via

audio equipment Audio equipment refers to devices that reproduce, record, or process sound. This includes microphones, radio receivers, AV receivers, CD players, tape recorders, amplifiers, mixing consoles, effects units, headphones, and Speaker (audio equipmen ...

) without using

pharmacological Pharmacology is a branch of medicine, biology and pharmaceutical sciences concerned with drug or medication action, where a drug may be defined as any artificial, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemica ...

agents (that is, without

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...

drugs), usually during painful medical procedures such as dental treatments or some outpatient surgical procedures. It was first introduced by Gardner and Licklider in 1959 for the context of dental procedures. There are many studies of this technique in dental, obstetric, and palliative care contexts. The most recent review reports mixed results for effectiveness,"A survey investigation of the effects of music listening on chronic pain" Laura A. Mitchell et al, ''Psychology of Music'
abstract
/ref> making audioanalgesia a questionable pain management strategy for painful procedures: it might prove useful in distraction and sensory confusion, but it is inadequate analgesia unless combined with pain relief medications. This makes it similar to breathing exercises during labor cramps before

epidural administration Epidural administration (from Ancient Greek ἐπί, , upon" + ''dura mater'') is a method of medication administration in which a medicine is injected into the epidural space around the spinal cord. The epidural route is used by physicians and ...

of anesthetics. The theme is that something that is slightly helpful can be a valid adjunct but is not adequate for the given task when used alone, except perhaps in a minority of patients (eg, drug allergies, patient choice). It has also been suggested that music may stimulate the production of

endorphins Endorphins (contracted from endogenous morphine) are chemical signals in the brain that block the perception of pain and increase feelings of wellbeing. They are produced and stored in an area of the brain known as the pituitary gland. Hist ...

and

catecholamines A catecholamine (; abbreviated CA) is a monoamine neurotransmitter, an organic compound that has a catechol (benzene with two hydroxyl side groups next to each other) and a side-chain amine. Catechol can be either a free molecule or a substi ...

. Audioanalgesia self-evidently has some neurophysiologic analogies to

stimming Self-stimulatory behavior, also known as "stimming" and self-stimulation, is the repetition of physical movements, sounds, words, moving objects, or other repetitive behaviors. Such behaviors (also scientifically known as ' stereotypies') are fo ...

for relief of

psychomotor agitation Psychomotor agitation is a symptom in various disorders and health conditions. It is characterized by unintentional and purposeless motions and restlessness, often but not always accompanied by emotional distress. Typical manifestations include ...

(especially auditory stimming) and in fact to any act of listening to white noise, calming sounds, or music for purposes of stress relief and relaxation. The full mapping of those analogies (including the identification of any common neural pathways shared by these analogues) awaits further development of

neuroscience Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions and disorders. It is a multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, anatomy, molecular biology, development ...

See also

References

Further reading