Finding a Way to Treat Phantom Limb Syndrome through Video Games

When an amputee feels pain in an arm or appendage that they no longer have, the pain they feel is called Phantom Limb Syndrome. Many current treatments of this syndrome are drugs, electrical stimulation, and even a mirror to trick the brain into thinking the action of the remaining limb are being performed by the phantom limb.

A student named Benjamin Blundell with the help of the Advanced Interfaces Group from the University of Manchester, has hacked the Microsoft Kinect, to treat this group of 60 to 80 percent of amputees. The Kinect uses the wireless sensor to detect the rotation and positioning of the amputees existing limb so the limb could be virtually ”filled in.” With the combination of the virtual reality goggles, this is a very realistic treatment. Even though the Kinect is more expensive than the mirror box, this game could be a step in improving technology towards an even better product. If this is possible, this could be a effective and fun way to help amputees through their pain. Hacking the Kinect may be a much easier way to treat this syndrome than hacking the nervous system.

http://www.biomedicalblog.com/?s=february&x=0&y=0