About ALS
Information about ALS
What is ALS?
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a lethal neuromuscular disease that may affect any muscle group with the exception of the autonomously controlled muscles.
ALS is a non-contagious disorder of unknown cause. Sofar there is no successful treatment or prevention method known.
Diagnosis
To date there is no such thing as a unambiguous test or method to diagnose ALS. A conclusive diagnosis can only be made by combining physical examination with a series of diagnostic tests that exclude other diseases, with symptoms similar to ALS.
Variants
ALS, PLS, PMA: names with a meaning?
The planning of a movement happens in a series of complicated networks in the brain, of which the function goes wrong in the case of Parkinson’s disease or Huntington’s disease. To be able to execute a movement and generate muscle power, you have to activate two types of neurons.
Heredity
An estimated 10% of individuals with ALS have a family history of the disease. This form is known as familial ALS (fALS). For those patients, it is immediately clear that the disease is hereditary and that the risk exists other close family members might have inherited the disease as well.