We know that the right type of music at just the right time has the amazing ability to flip our mood around completely.

But while it can help numb the ache of a long week at work or a brutal break-up, can it actually stop us feeling real physical pain? During surgery, for example?

Can music work as a painkiller for surgery? (Rui Vieira/PA)

A new study suggests that music played to surgery patients either before, during or after the operating table can lead to reduced pain and anxiety. Apparently it can even eliminate the need for painkillers.

Scientists from Brunel University pooled the results of 73 trials looking at the impact of music on nearly 7,000 surgical patients and found that even those listening to music while under general anaesthetic showed reduced pain levels.

Hmm. Still a bit hesitant to tear off the gas mask and reach for your iPod? You’re not alone.

Could music get the anaesthetic job done as effectively as this? (Andrew Milligan/PA)

Medical professionals are still pretty sceptical about the benefits of music for patients, and whether it’s actually more likely to just distract the surgeons performing the operation.

Dr Catherine Meads, who led the research, said: “The lack of uptake is often down to the scepticism of professionals as to whether it genuinely works, and of course issues of budget and the integration into daily practice.

“We hope this study will now shift misperceptions and highlight the positive impact music can have.”

We said ‘listening’ to music, not making it! (PA)

Put the subject to Google and countless articles and studies pop up; some saying that music distracts our brains from feelings of pain and stress, and some explaining that it’s the way the tunes make us feel emotionally that influences how we handle physical feelings.

So if you want to try the theory out next time you are getting a wisdom tooth or an ingrowing toenail removed, we’d recommend carefully considering the genre you go for.

A number of available studies say – unsurprisingly – that classical music is the best for relaxation and the easing of stress, while grunge and metal link to negative and violent thoughts.

So what effect is this likely to have? (Myung Jung Kim/PA)

Co-author Dr Martin Hirsch, from Queen Mary University and Barts Health NHS Trust, said: “We have known since the time of Florence Nightingale that listening to music has a positive impact on patients during surgery.

“However, it’s taken pulling together all the small studies on this subject into one robust meta-analysis to really prove it works.”

So maybe there is some potential here for a new and much cheaper way to treat patients both during operations and while in recovery. But, for now, we’ll play it safe and stick to the drugs, thanks.

The findings are reported in the latest edition of The Lancet medical journal.