Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (or ALS)

August 19, 2023

ALS is a neurodegenerative disease in which special nerve cells called motor neurons in the brain and spine – which control an individual’s voluntary functions like walking, chewing, talking, moving their arms- are affected.
As these nerve cells progressively die, the muscles dependent on them are unable to function or move, due to which they begin to atrophy or waste away.
ALS is a progressive disease.
Once it involves the motor neurons that regulate respiratory muscles, breathing gets affected.
Currently, there is no effective cure for ALS and the best therapies are drugs and other interventions that could lengthen the life of the person with ALS (or PALS).
The average survival time is between 20 to 48 months on an average.