«ALS. Three letters that change people’s lives. FOREVER»
Let’s Work Together For ‘A Future Without ALS’!
(Canada) www.als.ca • www.alsa.org (USA)
ALS LOGO
The logo represents the disease affecting the body but not the ability to think. As you can see in the logo; the body is shaped differently but the head is still in tact. ALS affects the muscles in the body and not your ability to think.
A — absence of
MYO — muscle
TROPHIC — nourishment
LATERAL — side (of spine)
SCLEROSIS — hardening or scarring
ALS • Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis • Lou Gehrig's disease
ALS is a motor neuron disease that attacks a select group of nerve cells and pathways (motor neurons) in the brain and spinal cord that are responsible for voluntary muscle function. When a person has ALS, the nerve cells of the brain and spinal cord gradually cease sending signals to muscles. This eventually causes the muscles to stop all function. As the muscles remain unused they begin to atrophy (die). As ALS progresses, muscle function fades away in the legs, arms and body until, finally, the chest and diaphragm muscles stop working. At this point the patient is unable to breathe without mechanical aid. Eventually, most ALS patients succumb to respiratory failure, most notably carbon dioxide poisoning.
Eighty per cent of people with ALS die within two to five years of diagnosis, and between five to ten per cent may live ten years after diagnosis, while others live only a few months - eventually unable to breathe or swallow.
ALS has no known cure or effective treatment, every day two or three Canadians die of the disease, and approximately 2,500 - 3,000 Canadians currently live with ALS. You may see the United States facts here.
Resource site: http://www.als.ca
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amyotrophic_lateral_sclerosis
Let's Roll Out ALS
