Transcranial and Transcutaneous Stimulation for Pain: What Have We Learned From the COVID-19 Pandemic Shutdown?

Background: Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcutaneous magnetic stimulation (tMS) offer a novel noninvasive treatment option for chronic pain. While the recent COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus resulted in a temporary interruption of the treatments for patients, it provided an excellent opportunity to assess the long-term sustainability of the treatment, and the feasibility of resuming the treatments after a brief period of interruption as no such data are available in current literature.

Methods: First, a list of patients whose pain/headache conditions have been stably controlled with either treatment for at least 6 months prior to the 3-month pandemic-related shutdown was generated.

Unveiling the phantom: What neuroimaging has taught us about phantom limb pain.

Phantom limb pain (PLP) is a complicated condition with diverse clinical challenges. It consists of pain perception of a previously amputated limb. The exact pain mechanism is disputed and includes mechanisms involving cerebral, peripheral, and spinal origins.