Thai team scoops award for surgical music project

A team of Thai ophthalmologists from Thammasat University Hospital have won a top international award for their use of music therapy to ease the anxiety and pain of patients undergoing cataract surgery.

The team has co-written an instrumental song and melody with German composers designed to relieve the pain and stress experienced by patients during the procedures, according to Sakchai Wongsakittirak, the lead researcher.

The doctors in the team collected a gold medal at the 46th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva this year which showcased new scientific and technological developments from April 11 to 15.

It is the second consecutive year the ophthalmologist team was recognised for their work. Last year they were granted an honour at the event for inventing a mobile phone application that helps doctors diagnose people with diabetic retinopathy, a complication affecting the eyes caused by damage to the blood vessels of the light-sensitive tissue in the retina.

With the music therapy, Dr Sakchai explained it makes the cataract operation less traumatic.

“Some feared [the surgery] to such an extent they refused the treatment altogether. But that could end up costing them their eyesight forever,” Dr Sakchai said.

Cataracts, which are common among the elderly, cause one’s eye lens to become clouded.

The surgery replaces their natural lenses with plastic ones.

Some inherited genetic disorders that cause other health problems can also increase the risk of cataracts, according to mayoclinic.org.

The music can help patients reduce stress even before they step into the surgery, Dr Sakchai said, adding the therapy has already been used with more than 3,000 patients at Thammasat University Hospital.

The work has been published in a national research journal.

Dr Sakchai noted there is room for further development of the healing music protocol.

He added it could be applied to other types of small operation, including dental surgery.

His team’s invention was displayed, along with other technological novelties, at the Geneva event.

The International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva is the biggest of its kind in the world with outstanding works on show ranging from medicine and engineering to food science breakthroughs.