Gehrig's Disease Facts

Lou Gehrig's Disease is also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS for short. The disease causes the muscles of the body to harden and affects the spinal cord. Those diagnosed typically notice that they feel weaker and that their body feels smaller.

Diagnosis

• Diagnosis of Lou Gehrig's Disease is done by testing for muscle weakness and also completing blood tests that look for high enzyme creatine levels. In rare cases, a muscle biopsy is done to rule out other diseases that affect the muscles.

Damages

• ALS causes damage to the motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain. This causes the motor neurons to disappear and stop the brain from controlling motor functions. The muscles slowly atrophy and the person becomes paralyzed.

Patients

• Patients diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease are often between 40 and 70 years old, and the disease rarely affects children. ALS occurs in only one out of every 50,000 people in the general population.

Symptoms

• Symptoms of Lou Gehrig's disease include muscle weakness, balance problems, difficulty swallowing and muscle cramps. Patients with advanced cases of ALS may have muscle spasms or twitches that they can't control.

Treatment

• There is no treatment for Lou Gehrig's Disease. Patients diagnosed with the disease use drugs to treat the symptoms and stop the spread of the disease.

Prognosis

• The prognosis for ALS isn't very good, with a high death rate between 3 to 5 years after symptoms begin. Ten percent of patients diagnosed live for a decade or longer after being diagnosed.