Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41200450›Full record

SynthesisFrontiers in neurology2025

Effects of neuromodulation techniques on pain and depression in patients with phantom limb pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Xu-Chen Tao, Shujie Ma, Jingwen Gong, Jianzhong Zhu, Jinxiang Wang, Baoyu Wu, Yan Zhu, Xinhao Liu, Lei Fang

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Frontiers in neurology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Xu-Chen Tao *School of Rehabilitation Science, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Shujie Ma *Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine Rehabilitation, The Second Rehabilitation Hospital of Shanghai, Shanghai, China.
Jingwen GongDepartment of Rehabilitation Medicine, Shanghai Ruijin Hospital Gubei Branch, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Jianzhong ZhuSchool of Rehabilitation Science, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Jinxiang WangSchool of Rehabilitation Science, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Baoyu WuDepartment of Traditional Chinese Medicine Rehabilitation, The Second Rehabilitation Hospital of Shanghai, Shanghai, China.
Yan ZhuDepartment of Neurological Rehabilitation, the Second Rehabilitation Hospital of Shanghai, Shanghai, China.
Xinhao LiuSchool of Rehabilitation Science, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Lei FangSchool of Rehabilitation Science, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the efficacy of neuromodulation techniques in alleviating pain and depression in patients with phantom limb pain (PLP). Methods: We conducted a comprehensive search of five databases (Medline, Scopus, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science) up to March 2025, following PRISMA guidelines. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating central (e.g., rTMS, tDCS) and peripheral (e.g., TENS, NMES, PNS) neuromodulation techniques in PLP patients were included. Primary outcomes were pain reduction, measured by the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ), and depression, assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS). Data were extracted and analyzed using Review Manager and Stata, with heterogeneity assessed via the I Results: 17 RCTs involving 510 patients were included. Central neuromodulation techniques, particularly rTMS and tDCS, significantly reduced pain in PLP patients [excitatory M1 rTMS: MD = -1.45, 95%CI (-2.78, -0.11), Conclusion: Neuromodulation techniques, particularly rTMS and tDCS, are effective in reducing PLP but do not significantly alleviate depression. Further large-scale RCTs with longer follow-ups are needed to confirm these findings and explore the efficacy of other neuromodulation methods. Systematic review registration: PROSPERO CRD42022314995.

Indexed as

depressionmeta-analysisneuromodulation techniquesphantom limb painreview

Identifiers

PMID41200450
PMCPMC12588162

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.