![]() ![]() Inducing brainwave states with binaural beats has been used to decrease anxiety in patients. ![]() For example, if a 400 Hz sine wave is played into the right ear and a 410 Hz into the left ear, the brain is entrained towards the beat frequency of 10 Hz, in the alpha range which is associated with relaxation. The difference between the two frequencies must be small (below about 30 Hz) for the effect to occur. The binaural beat frequency is equal to the difference between the frequencies applied to each ear. The frequency of the tones must be below about 1000 to 1500 hertz (Hz) for the beating to be heard. 7, 8 Therefore, to generate binaural beats, pure tones must be presented to each ear through earphones. When two tones that are close in pitch but not identical are sent to a different ear, the brain creates an interference which is called the binaural beat without any physical interaction between the waves. This effect was discovered in 1839 by Heinrich Wilhelm Dove. 7īinaural beats are auditory processing artifacts, the perception of which arises in the brain for specific physical stimuli. Binaural beats reportedly influence the brain through the entrainment of brainwaves and can be used to reduce anxiety and increase pain threshold. The use of these beats as a therapeutic tool has recently gained interest among neurophysiologists and clinicians. Cruise et al 6 found similar results in a cohort of 121 patients undergoing cataract surgery under retrobulbar block who were more satisfied with their experience if they listened to relaxing music rather than operating room noise alone during the surgical procedure.īinaural beats are special sounds perceived when two auditory stimuli of different frequency are presented to each ear. 1, 2, 3, 4 Bellan et al 5 reported a large-scale study of 144 patients undergoing cataract surgery and found that listening to music before surgery was associated with decreased anxiety. Use of musical interventions, such as having the patient listen to prerecorded music through earphones, can relieve anxiety and reduce exposure to fearsome noises in the environment. Exposure to auditory stimuli in the operation room such as the sound of the phaco machine and the professional conversations of surgeons may also cause emotional stress to the patient. Musical interventions affect not only the physiologic domains of the patient such as blood pressure and heart rate, but also emotional domains, such as perioperative anxiety levels. Music, among various interventions, has been proposed to reduce operative anxiety. Worries about loss of control, being in an unfamiliar environment and expectation for good surgical results can produce high levels of peri-operative anxiety for patients. Anxiety is a common cause of psychological stress for patients undergoing eye surgery, as most of the operations are performed while the patient is awake. ![]()
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