The disease is a rare neurological disease that affects nerve cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement. Voluntary muscles produce movements like chewing, walking, breathing and talking. It involves degeneration of the nerves that control muscles causing progressive paralysis and wasting.
ALS is “familial” (that is, there is more than one case in a family) about 5 to 10 percent of the time. The other 90 to 95 percent of the time, it is “sporadic” (that is, there is no family history of the disease).
Often cramps are the first sign of the disorder. Weakness and wasting of the arms, legs, and hands develop over months. Symptoms typically include twitching, stiffness, muscle cramps, difficulty twisting or turning a key and so the patient may think perhaps this is arthritis.
Lou
Gehrig’s disease
