Music therapy as a tool for assessing hand use and communicativeness in children with Rett syndrome

A six-year-old girl with Rett syndrome was assessed in a multi-disciplinary specialist therapy clinic and aspects of her responsiveness and developmental potential were found in the music therapy assessment. Functional hand use, eye-referencing, motivated and intentional communication were observed and reported through video analysis of a 30 min session of music therapy employing improvisational methods. Absent or reduced hand clasping/plucking, interactive turn-taking, primary and secondary inter-subjectivity, and vocalisation with appropriate emotional expression were evident. Stable truncal positioning and occasional gentle restraint of either hand improved both spontaneous and prompted activity.. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.