Phantom Pain in Amputees: A Strange Phenomenon and a Strange New Treatment
March 19, 2008 by Liberty Kontranowski
Filed under Endurance, Extreme, Health, Oddities, Pain, Prevention, Psychology, Treatment, disability
Phantom pain felt by amputees in their missing limbs is nothing new. This bizarre phenomenon has been around since at least the Civil War era. But as the U.S. marks its fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq, we are finally seeing the emergence of a new and very unlikely source of phantom pain therapy: mirrors.
That’s right, mirrors. Dr. Jack Tsao, a Navy neurologist with the Uniform Services University remembered reading a paper in grad school which concluded that using a mirror to cast a reflection of the amputee’s remaining limb – which the amputee flexes and moves – tricks …read more
