Musical preference differs by OR specialty, professional role

Editor's Note

Musical preferences and perceptions of the effect of music in the OR differ by professional status and specialty, this study finds.

A survey of 282 patients and 390 providers (ie, physicians, residents, and nurses in anesthesiology and surgery), found that:

• Patients who highly enjoyed music said it alleviated stress and enhanced concentration and communication, and they favored music in the OR. Genres favored most were rock music (32%), classical music (28%), and top 40 hits (26%).
• Nurses and residents were more likely than attending surgeons to report high enjoyment of music.
• Surgeons and anesthesiologists had high median scores for enjoyment of music and low median scores for music as distraction.
• Anesthesiologists preferred classical and jazz/blues at lower volumes, compared with surgeons who favored top 40 hits at higher noise levels.