Following on from our earlier article on the technological advancements in Ukraine as a result of those injured in the war, an article in the Kyiv Post highlights the use of virtual reality (VR) therapy to reduce phantom limb pain in amputees. 

The technology is designed as a modern approach to the traditional ‘Mirror Therapy’ allowing patients to see and control a virtual representation of the lost limb, via a VR headset. The technology aims to retrain the brain’s perception of the body and ultimately look to reduce persistent pain. While developed in response to injuries sustained in conflict, the relevance for UK personal injury claims is far-reaching.

For defendants, this challenges the assumption that phantom limb pain is inevitably lifelong. As VR-based rehabilitation gains clinical support, longer-term pain and disability may no longer be a given and this has direct implications for mitigation and quantum. Where effective treatment exists, claimants may be expected to engage with it, particularly when advancing significant future loss claims for care and therapies. Better rehabilitation outcomes also support more evidence-led realistic valuations on cases, which can directly impact reserving models and indemnity spend on these catastrophic injury cases.

Rehabilitation innovation is moving fast in this area, and it will be interesting to see how quickly the UK courts, experts and insurers begin to reflect these developments in prognoses and valuations; and where the line on reasonable mitigation is ultimately drawn.