Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Symptoms:

• Muscular problems: muscle weakness, problems with coordination, stiff muscles, loss of muscle, muscle spasms, or overactive reflexes Speech: difficulty speaking or vocal cord spasm Whole body: fatigue or feeling faint Also common: difficulty swallowing, drooling, mild cognitive impairment, severe constipation, severe unintentional weight loss, shortness of breath, or difficulty raising the foot

Treatment

• Medication and physical therapy can slow ALS and reduce discomfort, but no cure has been found.

ALS can't be cured due to the rapid speed of disabling the body.

INHERITANCE:

• Usually affects mainly caucasians around age 55-75
• Major cases and around 90% of cases are random with military veterans having 1.5 percent increase.
• 5-10 percent of cases are passed on from a family member.

The numbers:

• There are 14,000 to 15,000 people who get it a year but no specifics on how many get it a year.

Most common in Caucasians from age 55-75. Men are more susceptible but genders become equal as the years pass.

Once diagnosed most patients have 3-5 years until the neurons shut down.

Families:

• The family is greatly affected with the patient to need attention by the family until the passing of the affected.

Myself:

• I had a great aunt who I watched slowly degrade until her death.
• I wanted to know more of what caused her death and I was interested in the disorder.

Cites:

• NIH. “Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Fact Sheet.” National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018, www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/Patient-Caregiver-Education/Fact-Sheets/Amyotro....
• ALS . “Consensus Criteria for the Diagnosis of Frontotemporal Cognitive and Behavioural Syndromes in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.” Taylor and Francis Online, 2016, www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17482960802654364.