Solving phantom limb pain – science is getting closer

Solving phantom limb pain – science is getting closer

"After amputation of an arm, most amputees report vivid and continuous sensations of their missing limb. Some can even move their missing hand as if it were still there. For many amputees, though, these sensations are painful and, unfortunately, there are no effective treatments for this pain."

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What is Parkinson’s disease?

What is Parkinson’s disease?

"Parkinson’s disease was not always known by this name. Almost 200 years ago in 1817, when English doctor James Parkinson first described the disease, he called it Shaking Palsy. But Parkinson’s disease affects much more than just movement. There are good reasons for why we think of this illness as largely affecting movement. Consider the actor Michael J. Fox and boxer Muhammad Ali. We know that they have Parkinson’s because of the obvious shaking in their limbs. This shaking or tremor is known as one of the four cardinal motor symptoms of Parkinson’s, but there’s much more to the illness."

Photo Credit: John Stango / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

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What is restless leg syndrome?

What is restless leg syndrome?

"Restless leg syndrome is a common affliction characterised by uncomfortable feelings in the legs accompanied by an irresistible urge to move the legs to relieve the sensations. People with restless leg syndrome often keep their legs moving by pacing or constantly moving their legs while sitting. The sensations commonly occur at night and have been described by patients as itching, throbbing, pulling, pins and needles or a creepy crawly feeling. Onset of the sensations usually occur, or get worse, while the person is relaxed, sitting or lying down. Restless leg syndrome is known to affect both males and females of any age but is more common in women and older individuals. Misdiagnosis is not unusual since the symptoms tend to come and go and may be quite mild."

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X-ray, how it changed our view of the world

X-ray, how it changed our view of the world

"Sunday, November 8 marks the 120th anniversary of one of the greatest moments in the history of science: an obscure German physics professor’s discovery of the X-ray. His name was Wilhelm Roentgen, and in the six weeks that followed, he devoted nearly every waking hour to exploring the properties of the new rays before announcing his discovery to the world. Within just months, scientists worldwide were experimenting with the newly discovered rays. Roentgen’s discovery and its subsequent revolutionary impact represent one of science’s greatest stories."

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Oliver Sacks & The Brain

Oliver Sacks & The Brain

"Sacks could write sensitively about religion, including a recent article on the role of the Sabbath in his own life, but in writing about mystical experiences, he typically repaired to his professional lexicon, referring to them as hallucinations – seemingly authentic visual and auditory experiences traceable not to any external reality, but only to the brain itself. Sacks had witnessed in many of his patients the depths of human longing, including a deep hunger for God, but to him they revealed truths only about our own psyches."

 

Photo Credit -© Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons

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