MOTOR NEURON DISEASE

Course overview

MOTOR NEURON DISEASE (MND) REFERS TO A GROUP OF CHRONIC SPORADIC AND HEREDITARY NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS CHARACTERIZED BY PROGRESSIVE DEGENERATION OF MOTOR NEURONS. THESE MIGHT AFFECT THE UPPER MOTOR NEURONS, LOWER MOTOR NEURONS, OR BOTH. THE PROGNOSIS OF THE MOTOR NEURON DISEASE DEPENDS UPON THE AGE AT ONSET AND THE AREA OF THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM AFFECTED. AMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS (ALS) HAS BEEN DOCUMENTED TO BE FATAL WITHIN THREE YEARS OF ONSET. THIS ACTIVITY FOCUSES ON AMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS AS THE PROTOTYPE OF MND, WHICH AFFECTS BOTH THE UPPER AND THE LOWER MOTOR NEURONS AND DISCUSSES THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN THE DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS, EVALUATION, TREATMENT, AND PROGNOSTICATION. IT ALSO DISCUSSES VARIOUS OTHER PHENOTYPES OF MND WITH AN EMPHASIS ON THEIR DISTINGUISHING FEATURES IN REQUISITE DETAIL.