Date of Publication

1-21-2008

Abstract

Background: • Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease caused by the degeneration of brain and spinal cord motor neurons, leading to steady loss of voluntary muscle function and early death from respiratory failure. •The incidence of ALS is 1?2/100,000 population, the prevalence is 5?6/100,000 and approximately 30,000 people are living with ALS in the United States. • Currently there is no cure for ALS; treatment is focused on symptomatic care and improving the quality of life. • Most ALS patients in the United States are treated either at multidisciplinary ALS centers/clinics in academic institutions or by community?based physicians/ neurology practices. • It is unclear if outcomes in patients with ALS are different among those followed in multidisciplinary clinics(MDC) versus community based physicians/ neurology practices (CP). • The goal of this project was to compare the type of respiratory education and care received by patients with ALS from Northern New England at MDC’s (Fletcher Allen and Dartmouth Medical Center) versus CP.

Advisor(s)

Rup Tandan, MD, FRCP, University of Vermont College of Medicine

Christine Broderick, Northern New England ALS Association

Agency

Northern New England ALS Association

Subjects

Respiratory Diseases

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 License

Respiratory Management of Patients with ALS in Northern New England
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