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Phantom Limb Summary

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In 1993, Ramachandran and Altschulaer first discovered mirror visual feedback to address phantom limb pain. An illusion was created by placing a mirror in front of the patient in a way that the amputated limb could be seen as a reflection of the remaining limb (Hagenberg & Carpenter, 2014). Mirror box therapy then is used to help alleviate the pain (Witt et al, 2007) (Helm II, S, 2014). Mirror therapy has been proposed as another alternative treatment for PLP (Wilson, 2010).

The pain is usually induced between visual feedback and proprioceptive representations of the amputated limb (Witt et al, 2007). Dr. Tsao has discovered that this technique decreased the phantom pain – pain felt in the area which a limb has been amputated due to messages sent to the brain of the nerve …show more content…

The study had three groups. One was the mirror group; patients viewed the reflection of their intact foot on the mirror. The second group was trained in mental visualization; patients with closed eyes imagine the movement of the limb. The last group was the covered-mirror group; patients move their intact foot while the mirror was covered. Both groups had done the therapy for 15 minutes daily for 4 weeks. The duration and number of pain episodes were recorded as well as the intensity with the use of a 100 mm visual-analogue scale. After the 4 week therapy, 100% of the patients from the mirror group reported decrease in pain. On the other hand, only one patient (17%) from the covered-mirror group reported decrease in pain and 50% reported worsening of pain. In the mental visualization group, 2 patients (33%) reported decrease in pain while the 4 (67%) reported worsening of pain (Witt et al, 2007). Mirror box therapy was the most effective in decreasing phantom pain. The results suggest that mirror box therapy may be useful in alleviating phantom pain of an amputated limb (Witt et al,

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