The safety and effectiveness of music medicine as an intervention for depression: A systematic evaluation and re‐evaluation

Abstract Background As the methodological quality and evidence level of the existing systematic reviews (SRs) on music as an intervention for depression have not been thoroughly evaluated, a systematic evaluation and re‐evaluation (SERE) was conducted. Methods Multiple databases including PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, SinoMed, Wanfang, and the VIP database were searched for SRs and meta‐analyses (MAs) on the effectiveness of music as an intervention for depression. The literature screening, evaluation of methodological quality, and assessment of evidence level were carried out by a team of researchers. The methodological quality was evaluated using the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR 2) scale in accordance with the 2020 Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, and the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) criteria were utilized to assess the level of evidence. Results A total of 18 SRs were included in the analysis. The 2020 PRISMA guidelines were utilized to evaluate various aspects such as search terms, funding sources, statistical methods for missing values, subgroup and sensitivity analyses, certainty assessment, excluded literature citations, assessment of publication bias, protocol information, conflicts of interest, and data availability, which were rarely reported. The evaluation of the studies using the AMSTAR 2 scale revealed that one article was rated as high quality, six were rated as low quality, and 11 were rated as very low quality. Based on the GRADE criteria evaluation, the quality of the evidence was found to be inconsistent, with reports primarily consisting of medium‐quality evidence. Conclusion The methodological quality of SRs/MAs of music as an intervention in depression is generally poor, and the level of evidence is generally low.