Abstract:

 Objective  To explore the effects of music therapy on the levels of cortisol (CORT), interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in stressed asthma rats. Methods  Thirty-two male Wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups: the control group, the asthma group, the stressed asthma group and the music group. Rats sensitized with ovalbumin (OVA) were exposed to OVA with a repeated restraint stress. Mozart Sonata K.448 was used to reverse the impairment of the stress. Animals were sacrificed 24 hours after the last OVA-inhalation challenge. Content of CORT, IL-4 and IL-1β was evaluated by radioimmunoassay (RIA).Results  Compared with the control group, the sensitized groups exhibited an increased IL-4 level(P＜0.05). Music decreased the IL-4 level compared with the stressed asthma group(P＜0.05). CORT of the stressed asthma group was higher than that of the music group and the control group(P＜0.05). The IL-1β level of the stressed asthma group had significantly depressive changes in contrast to the controls(P＜0.05). Conclusion  Psychological stress modifiesthe allergic airway responses. Music therapy could improve the immunity of rats and alleviates thesymptoms of asthma, which is possibly produced by reducing the release of endogenous cortisol and suppressing the activation of Th2 cells, and thus reducing the synthesis of IL-4.

Key words: Asthma; Psychological Stress; Music Therapy; IL-4; Cortisol