Art therapy as support for children with leukemia

during painful procedures

Favara-Scacco, C.
a
, Smirne, G.
a
, Schilir, G.
a
, Di Cataldo, A.
ab

a
Centro di Riferimento, Regionale di Ematologia ed Oncologia Pediatrica, University of Catania, Italy
b
Divisione di Ematologia ed Oncologia Pediatrica, Via Santa Sofia, 78, 95125 Catania, Italy
View references (41)
Abstract
Background. Children with leukemia undergo painful procedures such as lumbar puncture
and bone marrow aspiration. To overcome pain, certain units offer total anesthesia; others
offer generic support; others offer no preparation at all. Since September, 1997, we have
provided leukemic children with arttherapy (AT), a nonverbal and creative modality that
develops coping skills. Our goal is to prevent anxiety and fear during painful interventions as
well as prolonged emotional distress. Procedure. We treated 32children aged 2-14 years.
The modes of AT before, during, and after the punctures were as follows: clinical dialogue to
calm children and help them cope with painful procedures; visual imagination to activate
alternative thought processes and decrease the attention towards overwhelming reality and
raise the peripheral sensitivity gate; medical play to clarify illness, eliminate doubts, and offer
control over threatening reality; structured drawing to contain anxiety by offering a
structured, predictable reality (the drawing) that was controllable by children; free drawing
to allow children to externalize confusion and fears; and dramatization to
help children accept and reconcile themselves to body changes.
Results. Childrenhospitalized before September, 1997, exhibited resistance and anxiety
during and after painful procedures. By contrast, children provided with AT from the first
hospitalization exhibited collaborative behavior. They or their parents asked for AT when the
intervention had to be repeated. Parents declared themselves better able to manage the
painful procedures when AT was offered. Conclusions. AT was shown to be a useful
intervention that can prevent permanent trauma and support children and parents during
intrusive interventions. 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Author keywords
Art therapy; Childhood cancer; Leukemia; Painful procedures
Cancer is one of the modern health problems of people living in developed countries. Furthermore,
therapeutic approaches to cancer patients is constantly updated with new data. Aim: The aim of the
present study was to review the international literature referred to the application of music therapyin
the treatment for pediatric and adult patients with cancer. Method and materials: The method of this
study included bibliography research from both the review and the research literature on MEDLINE
(2000-2010) database and using as key words music, music therapy, alternative-
complementary therapy, cancer, children. Results: Music therapy, the last few years, seems to be
one of the forms of alternative-complementarytherapy for patients treated
for cancer. Music therapy is applied as part of complementary therapy in pediatric and adult
patients with cancer. Complementary-alternative methods are non-invasive, non-toxic, cheap, safe
and can be easily used by the patients themselves. Primarily, themusic therapy aimed to the
reduction of the emotional trauma and the feeling of the pain during the process of the treatment
Conclusions: Scientific bibliographic databases research concerning the music therapyin patients
with cancer seem encouraging, especially in children. Nevertheless, the further study of the role of
the music during hospitalization in the outcome of the treatment is essential. [ABSTRACT FROM
AUTHOR]

Alternate Title:
Music therapy as part of the alternative-complementary therapy in cancerpatients in
hospital. (English)
Language:
Greek, Ancient (to 1453)
Authors:
Efstratios, Athanassakis N.
1

Savvato, Karavassiliadou L.
2,3,4

Source:
Rostrum of Asclepius / Vima tou Asklipiou. jan-mar2012, Vol. 11 Issue 1, p28-36. 9p.
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*ALTERNATIVE medicine
*CANCER -- Patients -- Psychology
*MEDLINE
*MUSIC therapy
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alternative-complementary therapy
Cancer
children
music
music therapy
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Cancer is one of the modern health problems of people living in developed countries.
Furthermore, therapeutic approaches to cancer patients is constantly updated with new data.
Aim: The aim of the present study was to review the international literature referred to the
application of music therapyin the treatment for pediatric and adult patients with cancer.
Method and materials: The method of this study included bibliography research from both the
review and the research literature on MEDLINE (2000-2010) database and using as key
words music, music therapy, alternative-complementary therapy, cancer, children.
Results: Music therapy, the last few years, seems to be one of the forms of alternative-
complementarytherapy for patients treated for cancer. Music therapy is applied as part of
complementary therapy in pediatric and adult patients with cancer. Complementary-
alternative methods are non-invasive, non-toxic, cheap, safe and can be easily used by the
patients themselves. Primarily, themusic therapy aimed to the reduction of the emotional
trauma and the feeling of the pain during the process of the treatment Conclusions: Scientific
bibliographic databases research concerning the music therapyin patients with cancer seem
encouraging, especially in children. Nevertheless, the further study of the role of
the music during hospitalization in the outcome of the treatment is essential. [ABSTRACT
FROM AUTHOR]

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Student of Nursing department- "Alexander" Technological Educational Institute of
Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
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Sports Medicine Laboratory, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece
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Infection Control Unit, Academic Hospital of Thessaloniki "AHEPA", Greece
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Clinical professor of nursing department, "Alexander" Technological Educational Institute of
Thessaloniki, Greece
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