A new study finds that the brain does not appear to significantly rewire its map of the body after an amputation. Westend61/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Westend61/Getty Images A rare circulatory problem required Emily Wheldon to have her left arm amputated three years ago. Her brain still thinks it’s there. “Most days, it just feels like I’ve got my …
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Thursday, August 21, 2025 NIH scientists and collaborators reveal the brain preserves its representation of lost limb in clinical study. During MRI scans, participants moved their hand (pre-amputation) or phantom hand (post-amputation), as well as their lips (both before and after). Brain maps of the hand (red) and lips (blue) are shown for two pre-amputation scans (pre1, pre2) and multiple …
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The brain’s map of the body in the primary somatosensory cortex remains unchanged after amputation.Credit: Zephyr/Science Photo Library A brain-imaging study of people with amputated arms has upended a long-standing belief: that the brain’s map of the body reorganizes itself to compensate for missing body parts. Previous research1 had suggested that neurons in the brain region holding this internal map, …
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