Phantom limb pain: a case of maladaptive CNS plasticity?

Phantom pain refers to pain in a body part that has been amputated or deafferented. It has often been viewed as a type of mental disorder or has been assumed to stem from pathological alterations in the region of the amputation stump. In the past decade, evidence has accumulated that phantom pain mi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inNature reviews. Neuroscience Vol. 7; no. 11; pp. 873 - 881
Main Authors Flor, Herta, Nikolajsen, Lone, Staehelin Jensen, Troels
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London Nature Publishing Group 01.11.2006
Subjects
Adaptation, Physiological
Amputation
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Central Nervous System - physiopathology
Electric Stimulation Therapy - methods
Electric Stimulation Therapy - trends
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
General aspects. Models. Methods
Humans
Neuronal Plasticity
Neurosciences
Pain
Pain, Intractable - physiopathology
Pain, Intractable - therapy
Phantom limb
Phantom Limb - physiopathology
Phantom Limb - therapy
Sensory Receptor Cells - physiopathology
Somatosensory Cortex - physiopathology
Somesthesis and somesthetic pathways (proprioception, exteroception, nociception); interoception; electrolocation. Sensory receptors
Spinal cord
Spinal Cord - physiopathology
Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs
Denmark
Aarhus Denmark
Human
Nervous system diseases
Pain
Amputation
Plasticity
Central nervous system
Mental disorder
Review
Neurological disorder
Phantom limb
Stump
Test object
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Summary:Phantom pain refers to pain in a body part that has been amputated or deafferented. It has often been viewed as a type of mental disorder or has been assumed to stem from pathological alterations in the region of the amputation stump. In the past decade, evidence has accumulated that phantom pain might be a phenomenon of the CNS that is related to plastic changes at several levels of the neuraxis and especially the cortex. Here, we discuss the evidence for putative pathophysiological mechanisms with an emphasis on central, and in particular cortical, changes. We cite both animal and human studies and derive suggestions for innovative interventions aimed at alleviating phantom pain.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ObjectType-Review-1
ISSN:1471-003X
1471-0048
1471-0048
1469-3178
DOI:10.1038/nrn1991