A Rare Subtype of Non-small Cell Lung Cancer: Report of 159 Resected Pathological Stage I-IIIA Pulmonary Lymphoepithelioma-Like Carcinoma Cases.

Background: The current study analyzed resected stage I-IIIA pulmonary lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma (LELC) cases to define the clinical characteristics, prognosis and long-term outcomes of resected LELC, with the purpose of guiding clinical management for this rare tumor. Methods: Resected stage I-IIIA LELC, adenocarcinoma (ADC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) cases from our center were enrolled. Propensity score matching (PSM) was applied to minimize the selection bias. Overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were compared between groups. Multivariate analyses were performed to identify the prognostic factors, and a nomogram was developed. Results: A total of 159 LELCs, 2,757 ADCs, and 1,331 SCCs were included. LELC, dominated among younger patients and non-smokers. LELC was a poorly differentiated disease that lacked driver gene mutations and was positive for immunohistochemistry indicators of squamous cell lineage. Survival analyses revealed that OS was significantly better for LELC than for other common non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) both before PSM (all P < 0.001) and after PSM (all P < 0.05). Further analyses revealed that early pathological node stage and preoperative albumin level ≥35 were identified as independent prognostic factors favoring OS and DFS. Conclusions: LELC, dominated among younger and non-smoking populations, lacked driver gene mutations and was positive for immunohistochemistry indicators of squamous cell lineage. The survival outcome of LELC was better than other common NSCLCs.

Family involvement in music impacts participation of children with cochlear implants in music education and music activities.

Objective Children with cochlear implants (CIs) participate in musical activities in school and daily lives. Considerable variability exists regarding the amount of music involvement and enjoyment. Using the Music Engagement Questionnaire-Preschool/Elementary (MEQ-P/E), we wanted to determine patterns of musical participation and the impact of familial factors on engagement. Methods Parents of 32 children with CIs (16 preschool and 16 elementary) completed a questionnaire regarding the musical involvement of their child with an implant and a normal-hearing (NH) sibling (if one existed). We compared CI children's involvement to that of their NH siblings as well as across groups of children with and without CIs. Correlations between parent ratings of music importance, demographic factors, and involvement of CI and NH children were conducted within and across groups. Results No significant differences were found between children with CIs and NH siblings, meaning children from the same family showed similar levels of musical involvement. When compared at the same developmental stage, no significant differences were found between preschool children with and without CIs. Parents who rated the importance of music as 'low' or 'middle' had children (NH and CI) who were less involved in music activities. Children whose parents rated music importance as 'high' were involved in monthly to weekly music activities with 81.25% reporting daily music listening. Conclusion Despite a less-than-ideal auditory signal for music, preschool and school-aged CI children enjoy and are involved in musical experiences. Families who enjoy and spend a greater amount of time involved in music tend to have children who also engage more actively in music.

The Interplay of Preference, Familiarity and Psychophysical Properties in Defining Relaxation Music.

BACKGROUND: The stress response has been well documented in past music therapy literature. However, hypometabolism, or the relaxation response, has received much less attention. Music therapists have long utilized various music-assisted relaxation techniques with both live and recorded music to elicit such a response. The ongoing proliferations of relaxation music through commercial media and the dire lack of evidence to support such claims warrant attention from healthcare professionals and music therapists. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of these 3 studies was to investigate the correlational relationships between 12 psychophysical properties of music, preference, familiarity, and degree of perceived relaxation in music. METHODS: Fourteen music therapists recommended and analyzed 30 selections of relaxation music. A group of 80 healthy adults then rated their familiarity, preference, and degree of perceived relaxation in the music. RESULTS: The analysis provided a detailed description of the intrinsic properties in music that were perceived to be relaxing by listeners. These properties included tempo, mode, harmonic, rhythmic, instrumental, and melodic complexities, timbre, vocalization/lyrics, pitch range, dynamic variations, and contour. In addition, music preference was highly correlated with listeners' perception of relaxation in music for both music therapists and healthy adults. The correlation between familiarity and degree of relaxation reached significance in the healthy adult group. CONCLUSIONS: Results from this study provided an in-depth operational definition of the intrinsic parameters in relaxation music and also highlighted the importance of preference and familiarity in eliciting the relaxation response.

The efficacy of music therapy protocols for decreasing pain, anxiety, and muscle tension levels during burn dressing changes: a prospective randomized crossover trial.

The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of two music therapy protocols on pain, anxiety, and muscle tension levels during dressing changes in burn patients. Twenty-nine inpatients participated in this prospective, crossover randomized controlled trial. On two consecutive days, patients were randomized to receive music therapy services either on the first or second day of the study. On control days, they received no music. On music days, patients practiced music-based imagery (MBI), a form of music-assisted relaxation with patient-specific mental imagery before and after dressing changes. Also, on music days during dressing changes, the patients engaged in music alternate engagement (MAE), which consisted of active participation in music making. The dependent variables were the patients' subjective ratings of their pain and anxiety levels and the research nurse's objective ratings of their muscle tension levels. Two sets of data were collected before, three sets during, and another two sets after dressing changes. The results showed significant decrease in pain levels before (P < .025), during (P < .05), and after (P < .025) dressing changes on days the patients received music therapy in contrast to control days. Music therapy was also associated with a decrease in anxiety and muscle tension levels during the dressing changes (P < .05) followed by a reduction in muscle tension levels after dressing changes (P < .025). Music therapy significantly decreases the acute procedural pain, anxiety, and muscle tension levels associated with daily burn care.