Abstracts

Rationale: Nonpharmacological-based interventions such as music therapy may be beneficial for pregnant patients with epilepsy (PPWE) especially to improve quality of life. The Lullaby Project is an innovative initiative in which PPWE are paired with professional musicians to create bespoke lullabies for their babies over a 10-week period. Through the involvement of this program, we investigate the feasibility of implementing musical program for PPWE and explore its potential benefits.

Methods: From December 2022 to current, pregnant individuals with diagnosed epilepsy seen in a specialized epilepsy and pregnancy program were invited to participate with the aim to recruit, enrol and randomize patients to receive either standard pregnancy and epilepsy care (n=15, control group) or standard pregnancy and epilepsy care with additional musical intervention (n=15, intervention group). Participants completed self-reported measures of quality-of-life (QOL) related to epilepsy (via QOLIE-31-P scale), and symptoms of stress and anxiety (via DASS-21 scales) at baseline and every ~3 weeks over 10 weeks.

Results: As of May 2024, 17 PPWE have been recruited, 10 randomized to the intervention group and 7 to the control group. baseline in: mean age of participants (intervention group 33.9 yr vs. control group 35.0yr, p=0.92); mean gestational age (intervention group 24.7 wks vs. control group 19.3 wks, p=0.20); baseline mean QOLIE-31-P scores (intervention group 47.5 vs. the control group 51.4, p=0.31); baseline mean DASS-21 stress scores (intervention group 11.1 vs. the control group 14, p=0.45); and baseline mean DASS-21 anxiety scores (intervention group 5.1 vs. control group 7.4, p=0.56). The average length for participants to complete the intervention is 18 wks (9-29 wks). Nine out of 10 participants in the intervention group completed the Lullaby Project, i.e. the fulfillment rate was 90%, while 4/7 control participants completed the study, demonstrating feasibility of such a music program. Changes in QOLIE-31-P scores over the length of the study (ranges 9-29 weeks) were -0.21 for the intervention group and -3.78 for the control group suggesting a trend towards greater positive stabilization in the intervention group, though this did not reach statistical significance (p=0.23). This result is likely due to the current sample size being not yet large enough for statistical analyses, but initial trends may indicate a benefit in QOL in intervention participants. Preliminary qualitative data show emerging themes of positive feelings such as connectivity, creativity, and positivity in the intervention group.

Conclusions: Our preliminary analysis shows that a musical intervention program such as the “Lullaby Project” is feasible for PPWE with a trend towards stabilization of QOL measures that did not achieve statistical significance given our small sample size. Further benefits can be explored as our sample size increases.

Funding: O'Born Fellowship Fund for Women's Neurology, Krembil Brain Science
The Corporation of Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall