{
  "id": 9662093,
  "title": "Classical music in cognitive rehabilitation: Three case studies of spatial neglect",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/24/classical-music-in-cognitive-rehabilitation-three-case-studies-of",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "bioRxiv",
    "slug": "biorxiv",
    "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.18.751660v1?rss=1"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Three patients with chronic spatial neglect after right-hemisphere stroke participated in a study comparing the effects of classical music versus an audiobook control. All participants exhibited right superior longitudinal fasciculus II disconnection but retained callosal pathways. The crossover protocol involved two weeks of daily audiovisual classical music followed by an audiobook.\n\nUpon listening to classical music, all patients showed leftward shifts in line bisection, an indicator of spatial neglect. This shift occurred across all five lines tested and was accompanied by increased posterior interhemispheric theta-band weighted symbolic mutual information (wSMI). However, after the audiobook control, the spatial improvements reversed, and the wSMI returned to the pathological range, without any improvement in mood.\n\nNeural activity during the N1 event-related potential showed mixed behavioral effects. While mood and quality of life improved after exposure to classical music, the N3 event-related potential exhibited no significant spatial improvement and worsened mood following the music listening.\n\nThese diverse responses emphasize the need for larger studies to identify connectional predictors that may determine individual outcomes to classical music interventions. The findings suggest that classical music has the potential to be an adjunct therapy for neglect rehabilitation, as it may promote interhemispheric communication beyond just mood improvement. Importantly, the audiobook control proved to be more than just a passive listening experience, as it did not produce any of the beneficial effects observed with classical music.",
  "summary": "Chronic spatial neglect after right-hemisphere stroke reflects network dysfunction, with recovery influenced by structural connectivity. Music recruits coordinated bi-hemispheric activity and may promote interhemispheric communication after stroke. Following our pilot study in post-stroke aphasia, we asked whether classical music modulates connectivity and behavior in chronic neglect. Three…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}