Impact of a music exercise on oral function in patients with maxillofacial defects: a pilot randomized controlled trial

Statement of problem Patients with maxillofacial defects, including head and neck cancer survivors, frequently experience impaired oral function that negatively affects quality of life. Although music-based exercise has been reported to improve cognitive and psychological outcomes in older adults, its effects on oral function remain unclear. Purpose To investigate the effects of a combined music-and-exercise program on oral function in patients with maxillofacial defects. Material and methods A pilot randomized controlled trial was conducted from December 2022 to June 2023. Twenty patients with maxillofacial defects were randomly assigned to either a music-exercise group or a usual-care control group. The intervention consisted of a tablet-based exercise program integrating rhythmic vocalization, consonant articulation exercises, singing, and upper- and lower-limb movements synchronized with music. Oral function was assessed at baseline, 1 month, and 3 months using maximum occlusal force, lip pressure, tongue pressure, oral diadochokinesis, the Repetitive Saliva Swallowing Test, the Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire, and the cough test. Results Seventeen participants completed the study (exercise group, n = 8; control group, n = 9). In the exercise group, lip pressure increased significantly from 7.72 ± 2.06 N at baseline to 8.95 ± 2.03 N at 1 month ( P = .02) and 9.17 ± 1.91 N at 3 months ( P = .004). Maximum occlusal force increased from 268.52 ± 107.13 N to 417.42 ± 170.64 N at 3 months ( P = .01), and oral diadochokinesis for/pa/ improved from 5.44 ± 0.76 to 5.93 ± 0.75 syllables/s ( P = .002). No significant within-group improvements were observed in the control group. Greater training time was positively correlated with improvements in maximum occlusal force, lip pressure, and oral diadochokinesis. Conclusion This exploratory randomized trial suggests that a combined music-and-exercise program may improve maximum occlusal force, lip pressure, and oral diadochokinesis in patients with maxillofacial defects. However, because of the small sample size, per-protocol analysis, and the absence of a non-music exercise comparison group, these findings should be considered preliminary and require confirmation in larger, adequately powered pilot randomized controlled trials. Clinical Trial Registration https://center6.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/ctr_e/ctr_view.cgi?recptno=R000053438 , UMIN-CTR UMIN000046840.