More than 50% of amputees with ghost pains

• April 26, 2024

Between 50% and 80% of the people who have been amputated a member or removed an organ, either by diabetes , some malignant tumor , gangrene , or, due to situations of war or accidents, they show that they still feel it, mostly with painful sensations. That is, they suffer fromThe ghost pain syndrome .

This syndrome is not due to the affected person experiencing a feeling of loss to such a degree that they "imagine" that something that they no longer have hurts.

This has a scientific explanation: the phantom limb syndrome it is the perception of erroneous sensations of an amputated limb (usually painful), that it is still connected to the body and the brain continues to receive messages from the nerves that originally carried the impulses from the lost limb.

According to a study conducted by Dr. R. Sherman on American war veterans, between 50 and 80% of people who have had a member amputated experience this type of ghost sensations , and most of them say that the sensations are painful.

The International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), defines it as a painful sensory disorder caused by some damage, either functional or structural, of the peripheral or central nervous system; it is not necessarily related to the alteration of some tissue of the organism and it is frequent that it appears late, after having presented an injury, even up to 20 years later.

Neuropathic pain

According to the International Network of Neuropathic pain , phantom limb syndrome is cataloged as a neuropathic pain variant. This pathology is an abnormality at any point of the nerve pathway, which modifies the way the brain perceives sensations.

For this reason, it is common to register deep pain, burning sensation and even hypersensitivity without there being apparent reason for this to happen.

It should be noted that at be a pain of origin in the nervous system, the use of conventional analgesics is inefficient, moreover, delays the diagnosis, wears the patient and increases the suspicion that it could be a psychosomatic condition, without being so.

The neuromodulators , as is the case of the Lyrica (Pregabalina), are one of the most novel alternatives to face this type of painful sensations that profoundly affect the quality of life and sleep.

The neuropathic pain It can significantly influence the daily functioning and quality of life of patients and their families.

Many people with this disorder have difficulty sleeping, concentrating, lack of energy and drowsiness. Because of chronic pain, some people can not work, walk or even get dressed. (With information from Pfizer )  

Video Medicine: Could gaming tech help relieve phantom limb pain? (April 2024).