Introduction: Evidence supporting the use of music interventions to maximize arousal and awareness in adults presenting with a disorder of consciousness continues to grow. However, the brain of a child is not simply small adult brain, and therefore adult theories are not directly translatable to the pediatric population. The present study aims to synthesize brain imaging data about the neural processing of music in children aged 0-18 years, to form a theoretical basis for music interventions with children presenting with a disorder of consciousness following acquired brain injury. Methods: We conducted a systematic review with narrative synthesis utilising an adaptation of the methodology developed by Popay et al (2006). Following the development of the narrative that answered the central question ‘What does brain imaging data reveal about the receptive processing of music in children?’, discussion was centred around the clinical implications of music therapy with children following acquired brain injury. Results: The narrative synthesis included 46 studies that utilized EEG, MEG, fMRI and fNIRS scanning techniques in children aged 0-18 years. From birth, musical stimuli elicit distinct but immature electrical responses, with components of the auditory evoked response having longer latencies and variable amplitudes compared to their adult counterparts. Hemodynamic responses are observed throughout cortical and subcortical structures however cortical immaturity impacts musical processing and localization of function in infants and young children. The processing of complex musical stimuli continues to mature into late adolescence. Conclusion: While the ability to process fundamental musical elements is present from birth, infants and children process music more slowly and utilize different cortical areas compared to adults. Brain injury in childhood occurs in a period of rapid development and the ability to process music following brain injury will likely depend on pre-morbid musical processing. Further a significant brain injury may disrupt the developmental trajectory of complex music processing. However, complex music processing may emerge earlier than comparative language processing, and occur throughout a more global circuitry.

中文翻译：

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儿童音乐的神经生理学处理：叙事综合的系统回顾以及音乐治疗临床实践的考虑


简介：越来越多的证据支持使用音乐干预来最大限度地提高患有意识障碍的成年人的觉醒和意识。然而，儿童的大脑并不只是成人的小大脑，因此成人的理论不能直接应用于儿童群体。本研究旨在综合0-18岁儿童音乐神经处理的脑成像数据，为后天性脑损伤后意识障碍儿童的音乐干预奠定理论基础。方法：我们利用 Popay 等人（2006）开发的方法进行了系统回顾和叙述综合。随着回答核心问题“大脑成像数据揭示了儿童音乐接受处理的什么？”的叙述的发展，讨论集中在后天性脑损伤后儿童音乐治疗的临床意义。结果：叙述综合包括 46 项研究，这些研究在 0-18 岁儿童中使用了 EEG、MEG、fMRI 和 fNIRS 扫描技术。从出生起，音乐刺激就会引起明显但不成熟的电反应，与成人相比，听觉诱发反应的组成部分具有更长的潜伏期和可变的幅度。在整个皮质和皮质下结构中观察到血流动力学反应，但皮质不成熟会影响婴儿和幼儿的音乐处理和功能定位。对复杂音乐刺激的处理在青春期后期继续成熟。 结论：虽然从出生起就有处理基本音乐元素的能力，但与成人相比，婴儿和儿童处理音乐的速度较慢，并且利用不同的皮质区域。儿童时期的脑损伤发生在快速发育时期，脑损伤后处理音乐的能力可能取决于病前的音乐处理。此外，严重的脑损伤可能会扰乱复杂音乐处理的发展轨迹。然而，复杂的音乐处理可能比比较语言处理更早出现，并且发生在更全局的电路中。