His work in neurology has helped patients with phantom limb pain, a particularly cruel affliction for people who have lost an arm or a leg.

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He was decades into his professional career when he began to see large numbers of patients who were suffering from mysterious conditions associated with lower back, neck, trunk, and limb pain.

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The paper's authors, Richard Zegers, Andreas Weigl and Andrew Steptoe, reached their conclusion by comparing historical accounts of the maestro's illness - fever, rash, limb pain and swelling - with illnesses prevalent at the time of his death.

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Researchers at the University of Manchester are turning to virtual reality once again, not to have another go 'round at proving whether telepathy is real or not, but to help individuals with amputated limbs recover from so-called "phantom limb pain, " a sensation wherein amputees appear to feel pain in their lost limb.

ENGADGET: Researchers turn to VR to treat phantom limb pain

These veterans could have one or more disabling injuries, such as chronic pain, an amputated limb, or post-traumatic stress disorder.

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Those who wait longer for a fake limb seem to suffer more from phantom pain.

BBC: What phantom limbs and mirrors teach us about the brain

Patients then perform various tasks that trick the brain into thinking it can control the missing limb, something earlier studies suggested would help alleviate the often unbearable pain.

ENGADGET: Researchers turn to VR to treat phantom limb pain

In 2009 he used the phantom limb again to provide evidence for this theory, showing that sufferers could experience relief from phantom pain merely by watching someone else massaging or flexing their own hand.

BBC: What phantom limbs and mirrors teach us about the brain

Despite the pain and the prospect of spending years re-learning how to walk with a prosthetic limb, Chidiac almost never loses her good spirits.

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