The Effect of Listening to Holy Quran Recitation on Weaning Patients Receiving Mechanical Ventilation in the Intensive Care Unit: A Pilot Study

Mechanical ventilation (MV) causes high level of stress in hospitalized patients. Weaning is the gradual process of decreasing ventilator support that in turn lead to termination of MV and increased respiratory effort, which may exacerbate symptoms and prolong MV. This study aimed to investigate the effect of listening to Holy Quran recitation (HQR) as a non-pharmacological intervention in patients during weaning from mechanical ventilation. This is a randomized controlled trial in which 55 patients admitted in the intensive care unit (ICU) and on mechanical ventilation were recruited. Patients were divided into experimental (case) and control group. In the experimental group, patients received 30 min of HQR, whereas in the control group, patients had 30 min of rest in bed before the start of the weaning. The physiological and/or clinical parameters of weaning were recorded. These parameters include rapid shallow breathing index, respiratory rate, heart rate, oxygen saturation, exhaled carbon dioxide, and blood pressure. The baseline demographic data for groups were presented in tables. The mean age was 54 ± 0.5 years for the experimental and 56.4 ± 18.5 years for the control groups. The physiological and clinical parameters were compared between case and control and found no significant difference. The preliminary findings of this pilot study suggest that there is no negative effect of HQR on weaning patients from mechanical ventilation in the ICU. The results also outline and explorthe possible utility of HQR further in ICU patients as an intervention in weaning patients off from ventilator in the ICU. Although there remains much to be done, our work generates important findings in the field of critical care management.