A study published in Pediatric Surgery International has determined that children that listened to music or audio books experienced significantly less pain after undergoing major surgery than those that did not.

Pain scores were monitored before and after treatments. Fifty-six children, ages 9 to 14, were divided into three groups—one heard 30 minutes of songs chosen by the children from a list of popular music, another listened to audio books and the third (control) wore noise-canceling headphones. Pain scores were monitored before and after treatments.

Those that listened to the music or audio books experienced significant reductions in pain compared to the control group.