Acronym ALS1 Synonyms FALS Familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Lou Gehrig disease Keywords Any medical or genetic information present in this entry is provided for research, educational and informational purposes only. [uniprot.org]

Analyses suggest ALS patients may present with clinically relevant symptoms suggestive of connective tissue disorders, skin disorders, and nonspecific neurological complaints 5 years pre-diagnosis. Disclosure: Dr. [neurology.org]

Respiratory onset can present with: Dyspnoea and orthopnoea. [patient.info]

On physical exam, signs of hyperreflexia, spasticity, fasciculations, and muscle atrophy are present in an asymmetric fashion. Tongue fasciculations are also present. No sensory loss is noted. [medbullets.com]

[…] in ALS (which can present in a single extremity mimicking cubital/carpal tunnel syndrome), but absent in peripheral neuropathy ALS has normal sensory studies on EMG/NCS Treatment Nonoperative currently no cure or effective treatment goals of treatment [orthobullets.com]

• Pain

  If pain develops as the disease progresses (for example, if pain occurs when a person has to sit in one position too long), benzodiazepines, which are mild sedatives, may be used. [msdmanuals.com]

  We ask about general symptoms (anxious mood, depressed mood, fatigue, pain, and stress) regardless of condition. Last updated: May 13, 2019 [patientslikeme.com]

  Pain may result from muscle contractures and secondary effects on joints. Muscle cramps occur in almost all patients and may cause severe pain and sleep disturbance. Physical therapy can ameliorate many of the painful symptoms of ALS. [aafp.org]

  Pain often goes under-recognised and undertreated. It is thought to be due to spasticity but other mechanisms may be operant. [patient.info]

  […] dysarthria lower motor neuron (LMN) signs muscular atrophy weakness clinical fasciculations clumsiness Evaluation Diagnosis dependent on demonstration of both UMN and LMN involvement combination of UMN and LMN in the same extremity, in the absence of pain [orthobullets.com]

• Muscle Twitch

  Muscles twitch (called fasciculations). Muscle tone typically increases, and muscles tend to become stiff and tight, leading to muscle spasms (called spasticity). Movements are stiff and clumsy. [msdmanuals.com]

  The earliest symptoms include muscle twitching, cramping, stiffness, or weakness. Affected individuals may develop slurred speech (dysarthria) and, later, difficulty chewing or swallowing (dysphagia). [ghr.nlm.nih.gov]

  Some of the early symptoms include: fasciculations (muscle twitches) in the arm, leg, shoulder, or tongue muscle cramps tight and stiff muscles (spasticity) muscle weakness affecting an arm, a leg, neck or diaphragm. slurred and nasal speech difficulty [ninds.nih.gov]

• Muscle Spasm

  Muscle tone typically increases, and muscles tend to become stiff and tight, leading to muscle spasms (called spasticity). Movements are stiff and clumsy. In some people, muscle tone decreases, making the limbs seem loose and floppy. [msdmanuals.com]

  Baclofen may reduce muscle spasms in some patients. Patients troubled by leg cramps may benefit from quinine compounds. [rarediseases.org]

• Hyperreflexia

  Clinical manifestations include progressive weakness, atrophy, fasciculation, hyperreflexia, dysarthria, dysphagia, and eventual paralysis of respiratory function. [icd10data.com]

  […] difficulty muscle cramping urinary frequency or incontinence (late findings) sensory remains normal Physical exam neck ptosis (neck drop) due to neck extensor weakness manual muscle testing elicits muscle cramping upper motor neuron (UMN) signs spasticity hyperreflexia [orthobullets.com]

  On physical exam, signs of hyperreflexia, spasticity, fasciculations, and muscle atrophy are present in an asymmetric fashion. Tongue fasciculations are also present. No sensory loss is noted. [medbullets.com]

  The diagnostic process consists of a history and physical examination, repeated at regular intervals, to document progressive hyperreflexia, fasciculations, and upper and lower motor neuron involvement. [aafp.org]

  Clinical Loss of fine motor skills, triad of atrophic weakness of hands and forearms; leg spasticity; generalised hyperreflexia. Management Possibly riluzole. [medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com]

Full Title: A Prospective, Non-randomized, Open Label Study to Assess the Safety and the Efficacy of Autologous Multipotent Mesenchymal Stem Cells in the Treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. [clinicaltrialsregister.eu]

It is not in any way intended to be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, treatment or care. Our staff consists of biologists and biochemists that are not trained to give medical advice . [uniprot.org]

This allows us to administer treatment very early in the worm's life. But ALS is a disease of aging, which usually appears in humans around the age of 55. [nouvelles.umontreal.ca]

Background: The average time from symptom appearance to ALS diagnosis is 1 year, resulting in a detrimental delay in initiation of treatment and potentially precluding patients from enrolling in clinical trials. [neurology.org]

[…] and support There is no cure for motor neurone disease, but treatment can help reduce the impact the symptoms have on your life. [nhs.uk]

This cautious approach is understandable, given the prognosis of the illness and the devastation that being given the diagnosis may cause to a person's life. [patient.info]

[…] hyperintensity in the corticospinal tracts (specificity 6 GRE/SWI: hypointensity in the precentral gyrus bilaterally, known as the " motor band sign " 8,9 MR spectroscopy 2 decreased NAA decreased glutamate increased choline increased myo-inositol Treatment and prognosis [radiopaedia.org]

Multidisciplinary clinics 17 and noninvasive ventilation for those with respiratory failure ameliorate the prognosis slightly. [touchneurology.com]

Age at diagnosis continues to be the strongest predictor of prognosis; recall case reporting bias may play a role in estimates of survival time. [raredr.com]

Alternative treatment Given the grave prognosis and absence of traditional medical treatments, it is not surprising that a large number of alternative treatments have been tried for ALS. [medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com]

The etiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is likely to be multifactorial, involving both genetic and environmental factors. The disease is inherited in 5-10% of the cases. [uniprot.org]

[…] ncomms/2015/150610/ncomms8319/full/ncomms8319.html About the CRCHUM The Université de Montréal Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM) improves the health of adults through a high-quality academic research continuum which, by improving our understanding of etiological [nouvelles.umontreal.ca]

ALS is extremely rare, and the diagnostic odyssey can be rather arduous because other masquerading conditions or explanations often must be ruled out before ALS is formally diagnosed. 1, 2 The etiology or cause of nerve cell destruction in ALS remains [mybiosource.com]

Etiology ALS may have a multifactorial etiology or may result from a number of different neuronal insults. The major lines of investigation include genetic, viral, autoimmune 11 and neurotoxic hypotheses. [aafp.org]

Prognosis is poor; previous estimates of median survival from disease onset to death range from 20 to 48 months.[ 1 – 3 ] In most cases etiology is unknown, although a small proportion of cases appear to be of genetic origin.[ 4 ] A recent estimate of [raredr.com]

American Journal of Epidemiology 151(11):1053–1059. Sorenson EJ, Stalker AP, Kurland LT, Windebank AJ. 2002. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Olmsted County, Minnesota, 1925 to 1998. Neurology 59(2):280–282. [nap.edu]

Journal of epidemiology and community health 1992;46(5): 517–8. pmid:1479322 doi: 10.1136/jech.46.5.517 12. Kurian KM, Forbes RB, Colville S, Swingler RJ. [raredr.com]

Epidemiological predictions show that the incidence of ALS is going to increase in the next ten years, and this increase is going to stem from disease-specific findings rather than economic conditions or health care services [ 4, 10 ]. [hsj.gr]

Clinical epidemiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neurol Clin. 1996;14:399–420. 10. Swash M, Schwartz MS. What do we really know about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis? J Neurol Sci. 1992;113:4–16. 11. Drachman DB, Kundel RW. [aafp.org]

Home, Search, Index, Links, Pathology, Molecules, Syndromes, Muscle, NMJ, Nerve, Spinal, Ataxia, Antibody & Biopsy, Patient Info SPORADIC ALS Sporadic ALS: Common forms ALS: Epidemiology 7 Frequency statistics Incidence/100,000/year Overall: 0.4 to 3; [neuromuscular.wustl.edu]

Progress has been made in understanding the genetic defects and the pathophysiology of this crippling motor neuron disease (commonly called Lou Gehrig’s disease). [nejm.org]

Numerous trials have targeted pathophysiological processes, but there have been no recent successes. [touchneurology.com]

Pathophysiology This is a degenerative condition that affects motor neurons, namely the anterior horn cells of the spinal cord and the motor cranial nuclei. [patient.info]

Immediate and additional causes of death were categorized using an author-developed algorithm based on pathophysiology and potential relevance to patients with advanced ALS ( Table 1 ). Table 1. [raredr.com]

Research Centre (CRCHUM) improves the health of adults through a high-quality academic research continuum which, by improving our understanding of etiological and pathogenic mechanisms, fosters the development, implementation, and assessment of new preventive [nouvelles.umontreal.ca]

Prevention There is no known way to prevent ALS or to alter its course. Resources Books Feldman, Eva L. "Motor neuron diseases." In Cecil Textbook of Medicine, edited by Lee Goldman and J. Claude Bennett, 21st ed. Philadelphia: W.B. [medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com]

Treatment and prevention There is no cure for ALS, so treatment aims to alleviate symptoms, prevent unnecessary complications, and slow the rate of disease progression. [medicalnewstoday.com]

[…] royalties for patents on “Method for the diagnosis of familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis” (US 5,843,641) and “Mice having a mutant SOD1 encoding transgene” (US 6,723,893), holding a patent for “Compounds and method for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention [nejm.org]

Clinical trials offer hope for many people and an opportunity to help researchers find better ways to safely detect, treat, or prevent disease. [ninds.nih.gov]