Abstract
Let me start with a confession, I do not believe in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This used to bother me, but now I recognize this disbelief as an advance and an advantage. It is an advance because it explains things previously unexplainable like the clinical variations in presentation, duration, and severity of the disorder, the occasional remissions and improvements and the unusual cases that are due to a definite cause. It is an advantage because it enables me to initiate a detailed evaluation of each patient, with a clear conscience that I am not wasting time or money and with reasonable expectation of success. I conduct the investigation as if the patient’s life depended on the outcome, as it often does. My motto is to spend as much time and money evaluating each patient with ALS as I would have spent if that patient had cancer or leukemia or some other usually serious and often fatal condition.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
A. Schanen, J. Mikol, C. Guizoiu, C. Vital, M. Coquet, A. Lagueny, J. Julien, and M. Haguenau, Forme familiale liee au sexe d1 amyotrophic spinale progressive de lfadulte, Rev.Neurol (Paris), 140: 720–727 (1984).
M. Kaback, J. Miles, M. Yaffe, H. Itabashi, H. Mclntyre, M. Goldberg, and T. Mohandas, Hexaminidase-A (Hex A) deificiency in early adulthood: a new type of GM2 gangliosidosis, Am.J.Hum.Genet., 30: 31A (1978).
J. A. Simpson, D. A. Seaton, and J. H. Adams, Response to treatment with chelating agents of anemia, chronic encephalopathy, and myelopathy due to lead poisoning, J.Neurol.Neurosurg.Psychiatry, 27: 536–541 (1964).
M. Fisher, J. E. Mateer, I. Ullrich, and J. A. Gutrecht, Pyramidal tract deficits and polyneuropathy in hyperthyroidism. Combination clinically mimicking amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Am.J.Med., 78: 1041–1044 (1985).
B. Patten, Phosphate and parathyroid disorders associated with the syndrome of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, in: “Human Motor Neuron Diseases”, L. P. Rowland, ed., pp. 181–200, Raven Press, New York (1982).
P. Stortebecker, Motor neuron disorder. Deficiency of arterial blood supply to spinal cord and brain stem, Stortebecker Foundation for Research, pp.53-60, Stockholm (1983).
B. Patten, Neuropathy and motor neuron syndromes associated with plasma cell disease, Acta Neurol.Scand., 70:47–61 (1984). This reference is often miscited as being in volume 69 of Acta Neurol. Scand. The correct volume is 70.
H. A. Peters and D. V. Clatanoff, Spinal muscular atrophy secondary to macrolobulinemia, Neurology, 18: 101–108 (1968).
B. Patten, ALS of autoimmune origin, Neurology, Suppl. 1, 35: 251 (1985).
D. W. Mulder, ed., “The Diagnosis and Treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis”, Houghton Mifflin Professional Publishers, Medical Division, Boston, MA (1980).
L. P. Rowland, ed., “Human Motor Neuron Diseases. Advances in Neurology”, Vol. 36, Raven Press, New York (1982).
F. Clifford-Rose, ed., “Research Progress in Motor Neuron Disease”, Progress in Neurology Series, Pitman, Bath, UK (1984).
L. E. Mallette and B. M. Patten, Neurogenic muscular atrophy and osteomalacia in adult Fanconi syndrome, Ann.Neurol., 1: 131–137 (1977).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1987 Plenum Press, New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Patten, B.M. (1987). The Syndromic Nature of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. In: Cosi, V., Kato, A.C., Parlette, W., Pinelli, P., Poloni, M. (eds) Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 209. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5302-7_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5302-7_16
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4684-5304-1
Online ISBN: 978-1-4684-5302-7
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive