Get answers to your specific medical questions from UM Medical Center experts.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, is a disease of the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that are responsible for voluntary muscle movement.
ALS is also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
In about 10% of cases, ALS is caused by a genetic defect. In other cases, the cause of the nerve deterioration is unknown.
In ALS, nerve cells (neurons) waste away or die, and can no longer send messages to muscles. This eventually leads to muscle weakening, twitching, and an inability to move the arms, legs, and body. The condition slowly gets worse. When the muscles in the chest area stop working, it becomes hard or impossible to breathe on one's own. Persons with ALS eventually need a breathing machine.
ALS affects approximately 1 out of every 100,000 people.
Except for having a family member who has a hereditary form of the disease, there are no known risk factors.
|
A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is the first of its kind, requiring compliance with 53 standards of quality and accountability, verified by independent audit. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial process . A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics (www.hiethics.com) and subscribes to the principles of the Health on the Net Foundation (www.hon.ch). |