Induced sensorimotor brain plasticity controls pain in phantom limb patients

Takufumi Yanagisawa (), Ryohei Fukuma, Ben Seymour, Koichi Hosomi, Haruhiko Kishima, Takeshi Shimizu, Hiroshi Yokoi, Masayuki Hirata, Toshiki Yoshimine, Yukiyasu Kamitani and Youichi Saitoh
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Takufumi Yanagisawa: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
Ryohei Fukuma: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
Ben Seymour: University of Cambridge, Computational and Biological Learning Laboratory
Koichi Hosomi: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
Haruhiko Kishima: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
Takeshi Shimizu: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
Hiroshi Yokoi: The University of Electro-Communications
Masayuki Hirata: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
Toshiki Yoshimine: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine
Yukiyasu Kamitani: ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories
Youichi Saitoh: Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine

Nature Communications, 2016, vol. 7, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract The cause of pain in a phantom limb after partial or complete deafferentation is an important problem. A popular but increasingly controversial theory is that it results from maladaptive reorganization of the sensorimotor cortex, suggesting that experimental induction of further reorganization should affect the pain, especially if it results in functional restoration. Here we use a brain–machine interface (BMI) based on real-time magnetoencephalography signals to reconstruct affected hand movements with a robotic hand. BMI training induces significant plasticity in the sensorimotor cortex, manifested as improved discriminability of movement information and enhanced prosthetic control. Contrary to our expectation that functional restoration would reduce pain, the BMI training with the phantom hand intensifies the pain. In contrast, BMI training designed to dissociate the prosthetic and phantom hands actually reduces pain. These results reveal a functional relevance between sensorimotor cortical plasticity and pain, and may provide a novel treatment with BMI neurofeedback.

Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms13209

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