Those who wrongly believe they cannot get a tune out of their head should spare some pity for those who need antipsychotic drugs to do so. Older people suffering the rare phenomenon of musical hallucination may really have to fight off a constant playing of Abide with Me.

Nick Warner, a psychiatrist, who has been charting the condition among his patients in south Wales over 15 years, found the early Victorian classic hymn Abide with Me was the melody that lingered the most in the mind. Among 30 people, six named that tune, while five heard reruns of Christmas carols such as Hark the Herald Angels Sing.

Most "repeats" were religious music, he told a Royal College of Psychiatrists conference in Liverpool yesterday. But the songs Show Me The Way To Go Home, Don't Cry For Me Argentina, and The Red Flag all featured. One patient who repeatedly heard the Old Labour anthem also faced performances of The Star Spangled Banner.

Dr Warner estimated that about 1 in 10,000 people over 65 experienced the phenomenon, although it was possible more people were not bothered by it and did not go to a GP. "It may be that if your brain is not receiving enough stimulation this is more likely to happen. Low-dose drugs could treat the hallucinations."