Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-lnqnp Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-28T16:54:58.087Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Musical hallucination following whiplash injury: case report and literature review

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 April 2012

Y M Bhatt  and
J P de Carpentier
Y M Bhatt*
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Royal Preston Hospital, UK
J P de Carpentier
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Royal Preston Hospital, UK
*
Address for correspondence: Mr Y M Bhatt, Specialist Registrar in Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Royal Preston Hospital, Fulwood, Preston PR2 9HT, UK E-mail: bhatt_ym@yahoo.co.uk
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Introduction:

A musical hallucination is defined as a form of auditory hallucination characterised by the perception of music in the absence of external acoustic stimuli. It is infrequently cited in the literature, although population studies suggest a greater prevalence. The aetiology of this unusual disorder remains unclear.

Case report:

A 70-year-old man with acquired hearing loss suffered a whiplash injury in a low-speed road traffic accident, and subsequently presented with bilateral ‘tinnitus.’ On closer questioning, he described hearing orchestral music. There was no evidence of psychosis, delirium or intoxication, and the patient was managed expectantly.

Conclusion:

This patient represents the first published case of musical hallucination precipitated by whiplash injury. We explore the possible pathophysiological underpinnings of musical hallucination and highlight the need for a greater awareness of this disorder. A management strategy is suggested.

Keywords

Hallucinations, AuditoryMusicDeafnessCognition DisordersWhiplash Injuries
Type
Clinical Records
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 126 , Issue 6 , June 2012 , pp. 615 - 618
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1Asaad, G, Shapiro, B. Hallucinations: theoretical and clinical overview. Am J Psychiatry 1986;143:1088–97Google ScholarPubMed
2Warner, N, Aziz, V. Hymns and arias: musical hallucinations in older people in Wales. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2005;20:658–60CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3Berrios, GE. Musical hallucinations. A historical and clinical study. Br J Psychiatry 1990;156:188–94CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4Cope, TE, Baguley, DM. Is musical hallucination an otological phenomenon? A review of the literature. Clin Otolaryngol 2009;34:423–30CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
5Stewart, L, von Kriegstein, K, Warren, JD, Griffiths, TD. Music and the brain: disorders of musical listening. Brain 2006;129:2533–53CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6Hammeke, TA, McQuillen, MP, Cohen, BA. Musical hallucinations associated with acquired deafness. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1983;46:570–2CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7Cole, MG, Dowson, L, Dendukuri, N, Belzile, E. The prevalence and phenomenology of auditory hallucinations among elderly subjects attending an audiology clinic. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2002;17:444–52CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8Gordon, AG. Do musical hallucinations always arise from the inner ear? Med Hypotheses 1997;49:111–22CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9Jackson, ML, Ferencz, J. Cases: Charles Bonnet syndrome: visual loss and hallucinations. CMAJ 2009;181:175–6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10Griffiths, TD. Musical hallucinosis in acquired deafness. Phenomenology and brain substrate. Brain 2000;123:2065–76CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
11Lennox, BR, Park, SB, Medley, I, Morris, PG, Jones, PB. The functional anatomy of auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia. Psychiatry Res 2000;100:13–20CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12Davis, A. Hearing in Adults: the Prevalence and Distribution of Hearing Impairment and Reported Hearing Disability in the MRC Institute of Hearing Research's National Study of Hearing. London: Whurr, 1995Google Scholar
13Tanabe, H, Sawada, T, Asai, H, Okuda, J, Shiraishi, J. Lateralization phenomenon of complex auditory hallucinations. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1986;74:178–82CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14Bergman, PS. Unilateral auditory hallucinations. Trans Am Neurol Assoc 1965;90:226–7Google ScholarPubMed
15Paquier, P, van Vugt, P, Bal, P, Cras, P, Parizel, PM, van Haesendonck, J et al. Transient musical hallucinosis of central origin: a review and clinical study. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1992;55:1069–73CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
16Cerrato, P, Imperiale, D, Giraudo, M, Baima, C, Grasso, M, Lopiano, L et al. Complex musical hallucinosis in a professional musician with a left subcortical haemorrhage. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2001;71:280–1CrossRefGoogle Scholar
17Satoh, M, Kokubo, M, Kuzuhara, S. A case of idiopathic musical hallucination with increasing repertoire. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2007;78:203–4CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
18Isolan, GR, Bianchin, MM, Bragatti, JA, Torres, C, Schwartsmann, G. Musical hallucinations following insular glioma resection. Neurosurg Focus 2010;28:E9CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
19Sims, A. Symptoms in the Mind. An Introduction to Descriptive Psychopathology. London: Balliere Tindall, 1991Google Scholar
20Saba, PR, Keshavan, MS. Musical hallucinations and musical imagery: prevalence and phenomenology in schizophrenic inpatients. Psychopathology 1997;30:185–90CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21Hermesh, H, Konas, S, Shiloh, R, Dar, R, Marom, S, Weizman, A et al. Musical hallucinations: prevalence in psychotic and nonpsychotic outpatients. J Clin Psychiatry 2004;65:191–7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
22Fukunishi, I, Horikawa, N, Onai, H. Prevalence rate of musical hallucinations in a general hospital setting. Psychosomatics 1998;39:175CrossRefGoogle Scholar
23Mahendran, R. The psychopathology of musical hallucinations. Singapore Med J 2007;48:e68–70Google ScholarPubMed
24Tranter, RM, Graham, JR. A review of the otological aspects of whiplash injury. J Forensic Leg Med 2009;16:53–5CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
25Rowlands, RG, Campbell, IK, Kenyon, GS. Otological and vestibular symptoms in patients with low grade (Quebec grades one and two) whiplash injury. J Laryngol Otol 2009;123:182–5CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
26Holma, T, Laitakari, K, Sorri, M, Winblad, I. New speech-in-noise test in different types of hearing impairment. Acta Otolaryngol Suppl 1997;529:71–3CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
27Gertz, HJ, Göhringer, K, Schimmelpfennig, C. Successful carbamazepine therapy of 2 cases of music hallucinations. Nervenarzt 1996;67:387–9 [in German]Google ScholarPubMed
28Holroyd, S, Sabeen, S. Successful treatment of hallucinations associated with sensory impairment using gabapentin. J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci 2008;20:364–6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
29Strauss, M, Gertz, HJ. Treatment of musical hallucinosis with acetylcholinesterase inhibitors. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2009;80:1298–9CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed