Dor fantasma em pacientes com amputações maiores em membro inferior: revisão de literatura

Abstract

Phantom pain is present in most of the individuals who have suffered amputations. It is characterized as one of the main postoperative complications in this population, about 80%. Thus, due to the negative repercussions that this entails in the rehabilitation process and in the quality of life of these individuals, the present study aimed to carry out an update in the literature regarding phantom pain. A literature review was carried out in Portuguese and English related to phantom pain, lower limb amputations, diabetes mellitus (DM) and peripheral obstructive arterial disease (PAD) and their English translations. Of the 593 articles found, 64 were selected for analysis and 20 comprised the study. The incidence of amputations in Brazil has increased in the last years and there is a predominance in the lower limbs, in addition the main cause is vascular diseases. Phantom pain can be severe and difficult to control, it may appear for days, months and even years. Patients present pain sensations such as burning, cutting, stabbing, sharp sensations, and shooting; they also classify pain in the absent limb as something that interferes a great deal in their daily lives, often making it impossible to practice daily life activities. After a better understanding of the pathophysiology, the treatments began to appear with a greater impact, which reduced the presence of phantom pain in amputees and improved the quality of life of patients / clients, as well as the psychosocial benefits of these increasingly early interventions