880 - Stakeholders' Perspective on Mirror Therapy in the Management of Phantom Limb Pain

Objectives: Nearly 80% of patients after major limb amputation develop phantom limb pain (PLP) which can compromise their quality of life and independent functioning ability. PLP is caused by the lack of sensory/motor signals from the amputated limb, and as such traditional pain medications are not effective. Mirror therapy is a standard of care in the management of PLP. Our objective was to investigate both clinicians' and patients' perspectives on Mirror Therapy in the management of PLP.

Design: This study uses quasi-qualitative methods to examine current perspectives on mirror therapy and its efficacy in reducing phantom limb pain by examining a series of one-on-one interviews with clinicians and patients who treat or experience PLP.

Results: Examination of the interviews revealed mixed opinions regarding the efficacy of mirror therapy in the management of PLP. 62% of the interviewees believed that mirror therapy reduced phantom limb pain. Other positive attributes of mirror therapy were that it was low risk with no downside for patients, customizable, self-manageable, increases function, and has sustained benefits. 23% of the key stakeholders did not believe that mirror therapy worked. Other drawbacks included varying patient perceptions leading to inconsistent results, adherence to mirror therapy being difficult, mirror therapy can aggravate PLP, there being no immediate improvement, the patient must be educated on MT before implementation, the need for patient buy-in for positive results, and patients had a hard time placing the mirrors.

Conclusions: Many key stakeholders who use mirror therapy in the management of their patients’ PLP or their own PLP agree that mirror therapy is efficacious at reducing their PLP but is accompanied by a number of drawbacks that reduce efficacy such as a lack of treatment adherence. In conclusion, mirror therapy is effective at reducing PLP but more effort and research needs to go into improving mirror therapy regimen adherence.