Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease that attacks motor neurons, leading to wastage of the muscles. This affects every area of the body and as the disease progresses, patients begin to experience speech impairments and will eventually lose the ability to speak. MORE: Explaining the progression of ALS…

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by the deterioration of muscles in the body, leading to loss of movement, an inability to speak and swallow, and eventually, breathe. According to medscape.com, the rate at which muscle deterioration occurs will differ from patient to…

WASHINGTON — Visitors to the ALS Association’s Washington, D.C., headquarters can’t help but notice the silver baseball bat sitting in a glass display case at the entrance. An inscription says the Louisville Slugger was presented in 1989 to Rodney L. Houts, the nonprofit group’s first president and CEO, to mark…

Anthony Senerchia Jr., the 46-year-old man who served as the inspiration for the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, died on Nov. 25. He lived with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) for 14 years. Senerchia was diagnosed with ALS shorty after marrying his high school sweetheart, Jeanette Hane, in 2003. In…

Last week I spent a few hours visiting with my medical team at the ALS Clinic. Usually I leave feeling a bit tired from all the testing and chatter, but I always leave satisfied I’ve learned something new and helpful. You’d think that since I’ve been…

Analyzing muscles via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can help detect small physiological changes that happen when motor neuron diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) get worse, concludes a study by British researchers. The study, “Imaging muscle as a potential biomarker of denervation in motor neuron disease” appeared…

In this video from LA Fitness, 51-year-old surfing fanatic Chris Mehess shares his ALS story. Chris first began experiencing problems in April 2015 when he began having difficulties staying upright on his surfboard and regularly suffered from cramping in his ankles and calves. A few months later,…

A blood test can be used to diagnose ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases, a study indicates. The biomarker development company DiamiR came up with the test, which measures levels of small RNA molecules in blood. It is much less invasive than other ways of diagnosing the diseases, according to researchers…

Expressing “profound disappointment” with tirasemtiv — their lead candidate for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) — officials at Cytokinetics have ended development of the once-promising therapy. Robert I. Blum, president and chief executive officer of the San Francisco-based biotech, announced negative results for VITALITY-ALS (NCT02496767)…

The schizophrenia therapy Orap (pimozide) may be able to prevent the progression of ALS, Canadian researchers report. The team confirmed in a clinical trial of 25 ALS patients the results it saw in studies with worms, fish and mice. An antipsychotic drug, Orap is used to treat other psychiatric conditions…