After a stroke, the victim usually has plenty of time between physical therapy sessions to just sit and think (or look at TV). Finnish researchers decided to see if better use could be made of this time. They compared the benefits of music, language, or no auditory stimulus in 60 stroke victims over 75. The results have been published in the journal Brain.

The patients were randomly assigned to listen to music or an audio book for at least an hour a day, starting as soon as possible after their stroke. A third group received no listening material, and acted as controls. The music (or the book) was self-selected by the patient - pop, classical, jazz, or folk. The 'therapy' lasted 2 months. At baseline, 3, and 6 months a full neuropsycological assessment was done.

Tests of verebal memory at 3 months showed 60% improvement in in the music group compared with 18% for the book group and 29% for the controls. The ability to focus attention improved 17% in the music group. The music group were also less depressed and confused than the control group. At 6 months, the findings were similar.

This is an interesting, even exciting, report. A simple way to improve brain recovery, whatever the mechanism of the effect, is going to encourage more research into helping stroke victims, who are all too often left to languish.