Phantom limb phenomenon in patients with leprosy.

The phantom limb phenomenon (PLP) was studied in 42 patients with leprosy who had limb amputation and/or digital shortening; some of the patients also had another type of limb deformity, such as claw-hand or foot-drop, which did not involve significant loss of tissue. Thirty-eight (90 per cent) of the patients reported having at least one phantom limb (PL) for a missing or deformed part. Associated with each of the three types of limb defects, two descriptively and experientially distinct types of PLs were found: the paresthetic or typical (TPL) and the painless or natural (NPL). Descriptions of the TPL and the NPL are given. The findings were compared to various reports, particularly those of Stetter and Frederiks. The leprosy TPL was similar both to the PL of amputees as frequently described in the literature, and to what Stetter and Frederiks termed the PL sensations. A close correspondence, if not identity, was noted between the NPL of leprosy patients and the equivalent categories of Stetter's PL experience and Frederiks' PL as such. Included in these three designations are aspects of the PLP that are associated with the normal, intact limb; these aspects are thought to be usual concomitants of the PLP and to constitute manifestations of the persistence of the normal body image. From our findings, we conclude that for the appearance of a PLP, the actual loss of a part of a limb, whether slow or sudden, is not required, but the loss of its sensorimotor functions is sufficient.