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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 pain is associated with preserved structure and function in the former hand area
Tamar R Makin1, Jan Scholz, Nicola Filippini
1FMRIB Centre, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK. tamar.makin@ndcn.ox.ac.uk
Nature Communications
|March 7, 2013
Summary
Phantom pain after amputation may not stem from brain degeneration. Instead, persistent pain experience drives brain plasticity by maintaining cortical areas and altering connectivity, challenging existing theories.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Pain Research
- Neuroplasticity
Background:
- Phantom limb pain is commonly attributed to maladaptive cortical reorganization following sensory deprivation.
- This reorganization is thought to be a response to the loss of sensory input after amputation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of chronic phantom pain experience in driving cortical plasticity.
- To challenge the prevailing model of maladaptive reorganization by proposing an alternative mechanism.
- To explore the relationship between subjective pain experience and brain organization.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of structural and functional changes in the sensorimotor cortex of amputees with phantom pain.
- Assessment of inter-regional functional connectivity within the primary sensorimotor cortex.
- Correlation of preserved cortical structure and organization with persistent pain experience.
Main Results:
- Loss of sensory input typically leads to degeneration in the deprived sensorimotor cortex.
- Persistent phantom pain is associated with preserved structure and functional organization in the former hand area.
- Phantom pain correlates with reduced inter-regional functional connectivity in the primary sensorimotor cortex.
Conclusions:
- Cortical plasticity in phantom limb pain may be driven by the subjective sensory experience, not solely by sensory loss.
- The experience of chronic pain actively maintains and alters local cortical representations.
- These findings suggest a paradigm shift in understanding the neural basis of phantom limb pain and its link to brain organization.
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