Multiple phantom limbs in a child.
This case report describes multiple phantom feet in a child after amputation of a leg. The subject is a 16-year-old girl who was born with a right leg 10 cm shorter than the left and who at the age of 6 was amputated below the right knee so that she could wear a prosthesis that would give her normal mobility. The girl reports that she subsequently experienced 2 phantom feet and 3 sets of phantom toes which have persisted to the present time. Each phantom has a distinct size, length and position in relation to the others and each is also the site of vivid sensations such as heat, tickle, and fatigue as well as voluntary and involuntary movement. She also describes sensations that resemble sensations experienced before the amputation: one of her phantom feet feels flat and locked into a forward position which corresponds with the actual shape and position of her congenitally deformed amputated foot. The implications of multiple phantoms are discussed with reference to recent concepts of phantom limbs.
Lacroix
R
R
Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec.
Melzack
R
R
Smith
D
D
Mitchell
N
N
D000293:Adolescent; D000671:Amputation, Surgical; D001186:Artificial Limbs; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007870:Leg Length Inequality / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology / Q000601:surgery*; D008953:Models, Anatomic; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D010591:Phantom Limb / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D013003:Somatosensory Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology