Dear Editor,
We have read a recently published article in Zahedan Journal of Research in Medical Sciences by Mohammadirad et al., entitled “The Effect of Music Therapy on Sense of Loneliness and Life Expectancy in Methamphetamine-Addicted Individuals Attempting to Quit” (1). Mohammadirad et al. showed an absorbing inquiry on reducing the sense of loneliness and increasing life expectancy in methamphetamine addicts attempting to quit (1). They deduced that “music therapy can improve various psychological dimensions and, as a therapeutic approach, is able to meet the needs of addicts. Therefore, music therapy can boost life expectancy in people addicted to methamphetamine and diminish the effects of loneliness”. Although this is a highlighted issue in the field of health and psychotherapy, and we commend the authors for the valuable and detailed information they provided, there are 4 significant challenges to the methods used in this study, which is better to consider before publishing and generalizing the overall results.
First, in clinical studies, the randomization of study samples (such as random number table, blocking, etc.) is a vital issue, but in this study, the method of randomization was not discussed by the authors.
Second, although this study was a prospective clinical trial, no participation fellow chart was reported. To detail the general trend of study participants, the accompanying Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) (2, 3) flow diagram was not mentioned.
Third, the interest of the participants in the study in the type of music is one of the most important inclusion criteria of the intervention group (4, 5). Thus, they should be willing to hear the “Songs of the Heart” music package, and the authors should also pay attention to this matter.
Fourth, the most significant point is that the time of music therapy in the study should not coincide with taking routine medications such as dopamine agonists, antipsychotics, antidepressants, and γ-aminobutyric acid/glutamate modulators that can be taken in quitting process (6, 7). The reason is that these pharmacological interventions can influence the results of music therapy. Due to the lack of expression of this issue in the study, it is better to pay attention.
Briefly, the study shows the impressive effect of music on reducing loneliness and increasing life expectancy in methamphetamine addicts attempting to quit and adds evidence to current studies. Undoubtedly, according to the CONSORT statement, larger-scale clinical trials with rigorous and powerful methods are needed.
