Long Covid sufferers who sing lullabies find it easier to breathe, study finds

Singing lullabies like ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’ could help put long Covid to bed, research suggests.

Sufferers who took part in an English National Opera-led programme found singing helped them breathe easier.

The once-a-week scheme has been running since 2020, and aims to heal recovered virus patients left battling breathlessness.

It sees long Covid sufferers attend sessions with an ENO singer where they take part in breathing exercises, like singing lullabies and making noises with straws.

Lullabies were chosen because they are short, easy to remember and designed to be calming. 

Results of a trial comparing the outcomes of ENO Breathe attendees with a control group found the programme led to greater improvements in their breathing and their mental well-being. 

With hundreds of thousands of Britons estimated to have long Covid, experts said it is critical new evidence-based treatments are developed.

Long Covid is a poorly understood condition, which can leave survivors with fatigue, shortness of breath and memory problems months after their illness.

There is no known cure, with the NHS instead aiming to provide ways suffers can alleviate their symptoms or improve their condition.

Imperial College London researchers compared the results of 150 long Covid sufferers, 74 of which took part in the ENO’s Breathe programme — which lasts for six weeks.

The others received the general NHS treatment which includes physiotherapy, such as general breathing exercises, physical exercise, balance training and fatigue management. 

Researchers asked each participant to score their breathlessness at rest, walking, climbing stairs, and running out of 100. 

While both groups experienced improvements in their condition, the singing group saw bigger reductions in their breathlessness scores. 

Singing patients reported an average 10.48 point reduction in breathlessness while running, compared to the control group.

They also recorded a 8.44 drop while climbing stairs, and a 2.72 fall while walking.

However, the non-singers reported a slightly greater improvement in their average at-rest breathlessness. 

Participants were also compared on improvements in their mental health over the six weeks.

Researchers found singers had an average 2.42 point improvement after the program compared to the control group.

One Breathe participant, a 44-year-old woman, said: ‘I felt that ENO Breathe has been healing for the trauma I have experienced and continue to experience: of having an unknown illness, not knowing if I will ever [be] getting better, and of receiving barely any medical care, for over a year.’

Lead author of the study, Imperial’s Dr Keir Philip, an expert in heart and lung health, said with an estimated one in 50 people experiencing long Covid finding new evidence based treatments were crucial.      

‘Our study suggests that the improvements in symptoms experienced by participants, resulted from both practical breathing techniques learnt, but also the creative, humane, and positive way the programme is delivered,’ he said. 

Fellow author Dr Sarah Elkin, a respiratory care specialist said Britain’s recovery from the pandemic must include ways to help long Covid sufferers.   

‘It’s vital we find ways to support people with long Covid who are experiencing debilitating symptoms long after recovering from their initial Covid infection,’ she said. 

Their findings were published in the journal The Lancet Respiratory Medicine.

An Office for National Statistics (ONS) report estimated 1.33million adults were suffering symptoms of long Covid as of January 2. The graph above shows the change in long-Covid prevalence during the pandemic but gives the rate in thousands

ENO chair, Dr Harry Brünjes, said the opera company was extremely proud of its Breathe programme and how it had helped people experiencing debilitating long-term Covid symptoms. 

‘Research like this demonstrates the enormous benefit the arts can have when applied in a medical context,’ he said.

One limitation of the study is that participants were asked to rate their breathlessness rather than lung function being measured with medical instruments with researchers choosing this option to increase participation in the study. 

Another is that the vast majority of the participants were white women with an average age of 49 years, meaning the findings may be limited.

In February an Office of National Statistics report estimated 1.33million adults were suffering from long Covid symptoms as of January 2.