The phenomenon of synaesthesia in phantom limbs — therapeutic treatment

Abstract

Phantom pains, appearing as a consequence of the amputation of a limb, have their source in the work of human brain. Many authors claim that the development and intensification of these sensations are connected to the neuroplasticity of the brain. Difficulties in the estimation of the circumstances, as well as patients’ ineffective attempts to palliate the pain, make the problem a vitally important issue. Pharmacotherapy is still a dominant and popular form of treatment. This paper serves to describe the causes of phantom pains and to discuss the possible treatment techniques, namely physiotherapy and unconventional therapeutic methods. The effectiveness of physiotherapy depends mainly on the accurate choice of the physiotherapeutic method or concrete treatment. The reactions of tissues to a stimulus and the obtaining desirable reaction of the human organism allow for achieving proper homeostasis and limiting pain. There are many areas of medicine where physiotherapy has proved to be successful, and its usefulness in the management of the phantom sensations should be also assessed.