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Updated: Jul 19, 2026

Real-time Video Projection in an MRI for Characterization of Neural Correlates Associated with Mirror Therapy for Phantom Limb Pain
Published on: April 20, 2019
Phantom limb pain: a case of maladaptive CNS plasticity?
Herta Flor1, Lone Nikolajsen, Troels Staehelin Jensen
1Department of Clinical and Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Heidelberg, Central Institute of Mental Health, D-68159 Mannheim, Germany. herta.flor@zi-mannheim.de
Abstract:
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.
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