Phantom limb

experience of excruciating pain caused by a limb or other body part that is no longer attached to the body, this disturbance can prove to be not only exasperating but extraordinarily frightening as well. This strange phenomenon, of experiencing a limb that has been removed from the body, is referred to as a “phantom limb.” Around “90 percent of amputees worldwide” have experienced these puzzling sensations. Interestingly, at times, the limb is sensed as having mobility and at others is sensed to be paralyzed. Amputees have conveyed they are subjected to a “tingling sensation,” that pervades the entirety of the limb that is missing, giving a…

are approximately 2 million people living in the United States who have undergone an amputation, and of those 2 million, up to 60-90% suffer from phantom limb sensations or phantom limb pain. Interestingly, these sensations do not seem to always fade with time as a patient adjusts to the loss of a limb, but as many as 70% report phantom sensations several years after the loss of the limb (Hanley et al., 2009; Foell, Berkrater-Bodmann, Diers, & Flor, 2014; Preissler et al.,2012; Ramachandran &…

The Phantom Limb Phenomenon The phantom limb phenomenon is a known response that occurs following surgery in amputee patients. This response provides a vivid sensation that the amputated limb is still present and phantom limb pain is most commonly seen following the amputation of the arm or leg. The pain felt, may be related to physical or psychological factors, including the weather, or emotional stress, (Flor, 2002). Phantom limb is frequently apparent with physical pain, and this occurs in…

Phantom Limb Pain (PLP) is described as a sense of pain in a non-existent extremity. This means that one who is missing their limb may feel pain which is perceived to be originating from where the original arm was. Not all cases of PLP are the same because everyone processes limb loss differently and no single injury are the same. Phantom limb pain can occur in various parts of the body and is not limited to a particular type of treatment. Similar to other illnesses, sensation vary from case to…

Most amputees report a sequela where they perceive painful sensations in the missing part of the amputated limbs1. This condition is known as phantom limb pain (PLP). While various hypotheses have been proposed to explain the etiology of PLP, it remains unclear1. In this essay, I will present the debate between two contrasting theories on the possible causes of PLP. One argues that PLP arises as a top-down phenomenon because of maladaptive cortical plasticity2, and conversely, the other…

Over the past couple years many scientists have heard about this strange pain in a part of the body that no longer exists. It is called Phantom Limb Pain. Many amputees agree that this pain is too much. Phantom Limb Pain occurs in 80 percent of the people who have had a limb amputated. Some amputees may experience tingling, cramping, heat, and cold in that part that has been removed. The sensations that may have been experienced before the limb was removed may be experienced to the phantom limb.…

Phantom limb pain (abbreviate to PLP) is a rare occurrence that most people will never experience. PLP is a sensation of pain that only amputees can comprehend. An individual with an amputated limb may experience sensations of throbbing and sometimes constant pain where the limb used to be, which now no longer exists. To a healthy individual this pain may seem fake or imaginary, but to an amputee who experiences PLP, the pain is very real. It is estimated that an astonishing 60-80% of amputees…

amputation by continuing to send pain signals to the brain even when the limb no longer exists (Virani 46). Again, this theory follows the generalization made at the beginning of this essay, furthering the idea that when a hardship is encountered, the brain tries to continue as before the occurrence. Vilayanur S. Ramachandran, a neuroscientist well known for his contributions in the field of behavioral neurology as well as visual psychophysics, explains in “The Perception of Phantom Limbs” that…

Limb deficiencies resulting from traumatic amputation are a specialized form of trauma. They often do not occur in children, and as such, can be difficult to handle. This trauma is also specifically labor intensive because it affects the child as whole: physically, emotionally, and psychologically. These consequences are persistent, occurring as soon as the trauma does, and continuing long after into the lives of the child and parents. These also mean that the child will require care in…

research study was to find out the relevance of changes in phantom limb pain, and the effect of visceral stimulation has on the intensity of phantom limb pain. Researchers were trying to investigate and answer the commonness of the change of phantom limb sensation and pain with visceral stimulation in military personnel with amputation and pain intensity. One of the questions that they were trying to answer was why do some people have get phantom limb pain when their lower limbs get amputated? …