'Virtual massage' for phantom limb pain

0 Comments | AFP, March, 2008

PARIS (AFP) — An amputee could be "cured" of phantom limb pain by tricking the brain into reacting to the sight of someone else performing soothing, massage-like gestures, a researcher has found.

The paradoxical sensation of pain in a missing limb is frequently reported by amputees.

Working with US combat veterans, Vilayanur Ramachandran, Director of Center for Brain and Cognition at the University of California, San Diego conducted a series of experiments to better understand why these feelings of pain arise and how they might be eliminated.

Recent studies have shown the critical role of "mirror" brain cells which fire every time someone makes a deliberate gesture, such as shaking hands or giving a thumbs-up sign.

These neurons are also triggered...