ALS Classification

There have been arguments made over many possible factors that lead to a higher risk of acquiring Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Consumption of alcohol, smoking, stress or trauma, pesticide exposure, heavy metal exposure such as lead or mercury, age, electrical injury, geographical location of residency and even more have been experimented with to see if there is a common thread that may be causing people to be at risk for the condition (Environmental Factors 2015). In 2012 Louise Thomas found that the only risk factor that seems to be contributing is smoking. When smoking, a person is exposed to the chemical in cigarettes called formaldehyde. Formaldehyde, a well-known chemical that is detrimental to a person’s body, affects the body in …show more content…
The first category, Sporadic ALS, is the most common form of ALS in the United States, and ninety to ninety five of all cases in the United States fall under this classification (The ALS Association 2014).This type is also known as Classical ALS. This type is characterized by a combination of UMN and LMN problems and occurs in about two thirds of people that develop this disease. People who develop Sporadic ALS did not develop it through inheritance. The second classification of ALS is known as Familial ALS. This type takes up around five to ten percent of the cases in the United States (The ALS Association 2014). Familial ALS can only be inherited, with this low percentage; there is only a fifty percent chance that each offspring has to develop Familial ALS in their lifetime. Around twenty percent of these cases that people are diagnosed with have a mutation in their gene that codes for the protein Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase. This gene is known for being located on chromosome twenty one. People that are diagnosed with Familial ALS are known for having sensory loss, but that is the only difference found between Familial and Sporadic on a neurological exam (ALS Research Collaboration 2014). The third classification of ALS is known as Guamanian ALS. In the 1950’s, Guamanian ALS was discovered in Guam and the trust territories of the pacific (The ALS Association 2014).This type of ALS is an extremely high incidence. This chemical was discovered in the seed of the Cycad. During the war, the Japanese had been using these seeds for treating ulcers as well as nourishment for the body (The New York Times 1987).After the war, nerve degeneration became very apparent among people, and this was when this type of ALS had become exposed. Over the years, this type has died down and become less apparent among people (The New York Times