3 Responses to “Lou Gehrig's disease”

1. admin says:

   February 1, 2010 at 11:15 am

   In article <7495.2808A…@stjhmc.fidonet.org> Jackson.Hard…@f857.n681.z3.fidonet.org (Jackson Harding) writes:
   

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   >JC> From: j…@dcs.glasgow.ac.uk (Jack Campin)
   

   >JC> s…@ais.org (Stephen Landman) wrote:
   >JC> > igerr…@eagle.wesleyan.edu writes:
   >JC> >> Could anyone out ther give me some information on Lou Gherig’s [sic]
   >JC> >> disease?
   >JC> > It is fatal, with death coming 2 to 5 years after diagnosis.
   >JC>
   >JC> Isn’t this what Stephen Hawking’s got?  He’s lasted quite a
   ~r>JC> lot longer
   >JC> than that.

   >It is indeed what Stephen Hawking’s has and he has defied the odds by remining
   >alive for some considerable time.  Some have said that the supreme being is
   >making him suffer for all those nasty things he’s said about Him not existing.  
   >I, like the good Professor himself don’t belive in Him, he’s just lucky I
   >guess.

     Is it possible to make a *definitive* diagnosis of ALS prior to post-mortem
   (unlike Alzheimers) ? If not, could he have some other rare but similar disease
   that essentially mimics ALS but doesn’t have the same (rate of) progression ?

     If he does have it, how rare is his survival ? Is there variation in the
   tendency or rate at which vital organs are affected that would explain his
   long survival ?
2. admin says:

   February 1, 2010 at 11:15 am

   In article <7495.2808A…@stjhmc.fidonet.org> Jackson.Hard…@f857.n681.z3.fidonet.org (Jackson Harding) writes:
   

   >JC> From: j…@dcs.glasgow.ac.uk (Jack Campin)

   >JC> s…@ais.org (Stephen Landman) wrote:
   >JC> > igerr…@eagle.wesleyan.edu writes:
   >JC> >> Could anyone out ther give me some information on Lou Gherig’s [sic]
   >JC> >> disease?
   >JC> > It is fatal, with death coming 2 to 5 years after diagnosis.
   >JC>
   >JC> Isn’t this what Stephen Hawking’s got?  He’s lasted quite a
   >JC> lot longer
   >JC> than that.
   >It is indeed what Stephen Hawking’s has and he has defied the odds by remining
   >alive for some considerable time.  Some have said that the supreme being is

   Lou Gherig’s disease or ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) is basically a
   clinical diagnosis, and thus probably a spectrum of neuromuscular disease
   entities.  There have been documented cases of survival > 7 yrs, at which
   point other labels are put on the disease, a favorite being atypical
   ALS (!-).  Then there are other related diseases that look like ALS,
   such as spinal muscular atrophy, PLS, etc.

   Edison Wong
   —
   – -    0 0    o o
    |      >      >
   ===    <=>    \_/
   Inquiring minds want to know:  just how did he do that???
3. admin says:

   February 1, 2010 at 11:15 am

   In article <1991Apr15.035832.27…@beach.csulb.edu> siche…@beach.csulb.edu (Jeff Sicherman) writes:
   >  Is it possible to make a *definitive* diagnosis of ALS prior to post-mortem
   >(unlike Alzheimers) ? If not, could he have some other rare but similar disease
   >that essentially mimics ALS but doesn’t have the same (rate of) progression ?

   >  If he does have it, how rare is his survival ? Is there variation in the
   >tendency or rate at which vital organs are affected that would explain his
   >long survival ?

   Motor neuron disease is extremely variable.  While the average patient
   is dead at 5 years, many are extremely slowly progressive and the
   patients go on for many years.  The slow varient is not at all uncommon.
   The diagnosis of Alzheimer’s can be made pre-mortem by brain biopsy.
   However, brain biopsy is not a procedure that most doctors or patients
   like to use.  Motor neuron disease is much easier to diagnose and
   can probably be done with about 90% certainty or better by clinical
   picture coupled with electrophysiologic evidence (and sometimes
   muscle/nerve biopsy).