overview
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (a-my-o-TROE-fik LAT-ur-ul skluh-ROE-sis) or ALS is a progressive disorder of the nervous system that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and results in loss of muscle control. .
ALS is often referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease, named after the baseball player who was diagnosed. Doctors usually don’t know why ALS occurs. Some cases are inherited. Lou Gehrig’s disease Treatment in Hyderabad
symptoms
The signs and symptoms of ALS vary widely from person to person, depending on the neurons affected. Signs and symptoms can include:
- Difficulty walking or doing normal daily activities
- Trip and fall
- Weakness in the leg, feet, or ankle
- Weakness or clumsiness of the hand
- Blurred speech or difficulty swallowing
- Muscle spasms and contractions in the arms, shoulders and tongue
- Inappropriate crying, laughing, or yawning
- Cognitive and behavioral changes
The reasons
ALS affects the nerve cells that control voluntary muscle movements such as walking and speaking (motor neurons). ALS causes the progressive deterioration of motor neurons, followed by their death. Motor neurons extend from the brain to the spinal cord to muscles throughout the body. When the motor neurons are damaged, they stop sending messages to the muscles, causing the muscles to stop working.
ALS is inherited by 5% to 10% of people. Otherwise the cause is unknown.
Risk factors
Established risk factors for ALS include:
- Inheritance. Five to 10 percent of people with ALS have inherited it (familial ALS). For most people with familial ALS, their children have a 50-50 chance of developing the disease.
- Age. The risk of ALS increases with age and is most common between your 40s and mid-60s.
- Sex. Before the age of 65, slightly more men than women develop ALS. This gender difference disappears after 70 years.
- Genetically. Some studies examining the entire human genome have found many similarities in genetic variations in people with familial ALS and some with non-inherited ALS. These genetic variations could make people more susceptible to ALS. Lou Gehrig’s disease Treatment in Hyderabad
Complications
In the course of the disease, ALS leads to complications such as:
- Difficulty breathing
Over time, ALS paralyzes the muscles that you breathe with. You may need a device that allows you to breathe at night, much like someone with sleep apnea could wear. For example, you may be given continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) or two-stage positive airway pressure (BiPAP) to help you breathe better at night. - Some people with advanced ALS choose to have a tracheotomy – a surgically created hole in the neck that leads to the windpipe (windpipe) – to use a full-time ventilator that inflates and deflates their lungs.
- The leading cause of death in people with ALS is respiratory failure. On average, death occurs within three to five years of the onset of symptoms. However, some people with ALS live 10 years or more. Lou Gehrig’s disease Treatment in Hyderabad