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PHANTOM LIMB PAIN AFFECTS MOST AMPUTEES
Did You Know That Most Amputees Report Pain In A Limb That Is Gone?
Studies That Tried To Count How Many Gave Conflicting Rates
Researchers Called The Disagreement Perplexing
Some Studies Covered Only Arm Amputees And Others Only Leg Amputees
Their Countries And Methods Differed Too
The Researchers Said That May Explain The Conflicting Rates
Several Teams Have Since Pooled Many Studies Into One Estimate Each
THIS NEWSLETTER IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. NOTHING IN THIS CONTENT CONSTITUTES MEDICAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, OR PROFESSIONAL ADVICE. ALWAYS CONSULT A QUALIFIED HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL BEFORE MAKING ANY HEALTH RELATED DECISIONS.
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OKAY BACK FROM THE REHAB GYM 🏋️
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A TRUCK ACCIDENT AND A MISSING LEG 🚚
A 49 Year Old Man Was Admitted To A Hospital In Wuhan China
He Had Pain In His Missing Leg
What Remained Of That Leg Hurt As Well
The Pain Occurred In Sudden Episodes
It Was Uncontrollable According To His Doctors
About 5 Years Earlier He Was Badly Injured In A Truck Accident
Surgeons Amputated His Right Leg Because Of Those Injuries
He Also Had Operations On His Left Calf And His Abdomen
Every Operation Was Successful And His Condition Became Stable
About A Month After The Amputation He Felt Pain In The Leg He Lost
He Was Diagnosed With Phantom Limb Pain
Then He Started Taking Painkillers By Mouth
He Kept Having The Pain Anyway
His Doctors Wrote That Painkillers By Mouth Have Limited Effects
The Pain Affected His Quality Of Life
When He Was Admitted His Doctors Checked What Remained Of The Leg
They Found It In Good Condition With No Swelling Or Fever
His Ability To Manage Daily Activities Was Measured Too
He Scored 55 Points
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He Got Zero Points For Bathing And Toilet Use And Stair Climbing
His Doctors Called Phantom Limb Pain A Common Result Of Amputation
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WHAT 39 STUDIES FOUND 📊
A Team In South Africa Set Out To Estimate How Common The Pain Is
They Searched For Articles Published From 1980 To July 2019
Their Review Included 39 Studies
Each Study Covered Adults Who Had An Arm Or Leg Amputated
Those Amputations Were Either Surgical Or Caused By An Injury
The Studies Had 12,738 Participants In Total
Their Rates Ranged From 27 Percent To 85.6 Percent
31 Of The 39 Studies Reported Between 50 And 85.6 Percent
The Team Then Pooled All The Studies Together
Their Pooled Estimate Was 64 Percent
They Estimated That Six Of Every 10 Amputees Report This Pain
Results Varied Widely Between The Studies
Next The Studies Were Grouped By Type Of Country
32 Of The 39 Studies Were Done In Developed Countries
In Developed Countries The Rate Was 66.55 Percent
It Was Lower In Developing Countries At 53.98 Percent
The Team Called That Gap Surprising
They Said It Might Come From How People Were Selected For The Studies
Most Studies From Developing Countries Had Lower Recruitment Success
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A MILITARY ESTIMATE AND A WORLDWIDE ONE 🌍
Two Other Teams Have Since Published Reviews Of Their Own
One Team Reviewed Studies Of Military Personnel Injured In Combat
They Updated Their Search In November 2022
In Total 31 Studies Were Included
Those Studies Had 14,738 Participants From 6 National Militaries
Participants Were Injured In Conflicts Including Afghanistan And Iraq
The Studies Reported Pain After Amputation Or Chronic Nerve Pain
That Nerve Pain Was Not Necessarily Related To Amputation
For Pain In A Missing Limb The Team's Pooled Rate Was 57 Percent
They Called That Figure Similar To The Review Of 39 Studies
The Other Team Aimed For A Worldwide Estimate
Their Review Covered People With A Limb Amputation
They Searched Databases Until 22 February 2026
Chinese Databases Were Part Of That Search
In All They Included 51 Studies With 13,053 Participants
For Phantom Limb Pain Their Pooled Estimate Was 61 Percent
They Called It Consistent With Both Earlier Reviews
Their Studies Differed Substantially From One Another
So They Said The Estimates Should Be Interpreted Cautiously
