A phantom limb is the sensation that an amputated or missing limb is still attached. Approximately 80 to 100% of individuals with an amputation experience sensations in their amputated limb. However, only a small percentage will experience painful phantom limb sensation. These sensations are relatively common in amputees and usually resolve within two to three years without treatment.
But what are the options if the symptoms do not resolve on it’s own. I saw a male in his 70’s with a right above knee amputation about 30 years ago from accident. He has had painful phantom limb pain for decades and has tried all the recommended treatments by his specialists. He would get daily frequent intermittent excruciating pain in his perceived right below knee region. He came in with a healthy dose of scepticism – and who could blame him really? He’s tried everything.
I most certainly didn’t guarantee him success with my treatment. But with acupuncture, there is a good chance to access the nerve circuits in his Central Nervous System that would have originally connected to his right leg. The treatment was simply a quick laser to single point on his face. There was nothing noticeably different straight away, but I advised him to come back in a month – one has to allow time for changes in neural circuits to occur.
He, in fact, came back about 3 months later. His pain within the month improved by about 75% – enough for a much better quality of life. The pain came as it was starting to come back again and he needed a ‘top up’. That’s very reasonable. We both weren’t expecting a cure, not after decades of a well ingrained phantom limb pain circuit. Control is probably the best we’re going to get. I’ll likely see him every few months when he needs a ‘top up’.
If you’re wondering what the evidence for acupuncture in Phantom Limb Syndrome is… there have been small feasibility studies, but no larger studies to confirm or disprove it. As is unfortunately the theme with acupuncture, we don’t have a big pharma equivalent to fund our studies. Still, we understand that basic neurophysiology of acupuncture, and it is clear that the effect is mediated via the nervous system. Therefore, especially for conditions that are neurological, one should always consider acupuncture as an (preferably early) option.
