Brain Can Map Negative Spaces in the Body, Scientists Say

Sharon Moore December 20, 2012

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There is no doubt that the human brain is very powerful. In a recent study by the University of South Australia, scientists discovered that the brain has the ability to know which part of the body is healthy or neglected.

The brain knows what area hurts

Their findings were part of a research about the spatial perception of people with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) – a condition characterised by chronic pain, which can occur in any part of the body. But usually, CRPS occurs in the arms and legs. Key symptoms include severe pain (which is often disproportionate to the nature of the injury), and burning sensation. In some patients, the affected area becomes swollen and cold because of problems in the blood flow. Doctors aren’t sure what actually causes CRPS but it is believed the disorder is triggered by immune response leading to inflammation.

In a series of experiments, scientists measured the changes in the hand temperatures of the people with CRPS as they moved them across their body midline. They noticed that when the patients crossed their injured hand over the midline, it became warmer. But when the hand was crossed over the midline, it became colder.

Said changes in the temperature of the hands of patients led to a small, yet significant reduction in the pain and an increase in the sense of ownership over the hand, the researchers said.

A Profound Discovery

According to Lorimer Moseley, study author, and chair in physiotherapy and professor of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of South Australia, the results indicate that CRPS involved a more complex neurological dysfunction than what previous studies established.

This means that the problem with the limb relates to the brain processes that maps something into a space, he added.

“When you put a healthy hand into the negative space it cools down; the map of space is influencing the rules by which blood flows. Our current finding is clear evidence of the autonomic nervous system being influenced by the brain’s map of space.”

“The space itself has adopted the signature of the disorder. This is a profound discovery, it’s a clear physiological phenomena. This midline effect changes how much the patient feels the arm belongs to them and how much it hurts.”

 

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Source of this article:

How the mind can map negative spaces around the body