This month’s newsletter, The Healing Connection, is focused on ALS Awareness Month, known as “Lou Gehrig’s disease.”
Who is Lou Gehrig?
Lou Gehrig was a Hall of Fame New York Yankees first baseman that played from 1923 until he retired in 1939. He led the team in six World Series titles and played the most consecutive games. He was diagnosed with ALS, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, a neurodegenerative disease that affects the brain cells and spinal cord. His health got seriously worse and he was unable to continue any schedule honoring the New York Yankees. The Yankees held an event honoring him where he gave his “good-bye” speech. By June 2, 1941, he passed away in his sleep at his home in New York City due to ALS. Since then, the disease is commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease after it ended the career of this most beloved player.
What is ALS, Lou Gehrig’s disease?
ALS, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, is a neurological disorder that affects the motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord that control muscle movements and breathing. Amyotrophic means “no muscle nourishment” and “lateral” is the area in the spinal cord where the nerve cells signal and control the muscles. When the disorder gets worse, the motor neurons stop sending messages to the muscle causing them to weaken and atrophy as nerve cells die. This disease causes weakness in the ability to walk, talk, breathe, as well as other voluntary movements. It gets worse over time and spreads to other parts of the body causing muscle twitching and cramps in the arms, legs, shoulders, slurred speech, trouble swallowing, tripping and falling, breathing problems, and can lead to a form of dementia.
Diagnosis and Treatment
Early diagnosis and treatment are very important. Conducting neurological exams, i.e., EMG, MRI and needle conductive studies, and review of medical records helps to diagnose ALS; however, other tests may need to be performed to rule out any other muscle diseases besides ALS.
Treating ALS in the early stages is the most effective way to help manage the disease and slow the progression since there is no way to reverse the damage to the motor neurons or cure the disease. Retraining the brain and spinal cord to respond to voluntary and reflex motor activities enhanced by targeted electrical energy wave stimulation improves muscle rehabilitation. Muscle stiffness, spasms, associated pain, and prevention or retardation disuse atrophy can be helped by using Electric cell-Signaling Technology (EcST) along with seeking physical therapy. The RST-SANEXAS neoGEN® EcST device can assist by producing varying electrical energy waves to stimulate and signal long-lasting effects on the motor neurons and muscle fibers (cells). Because the neoGEN® device uses an ultra- high frequency generator combined with AM and FM therapeutic energy waves along with harmonic resonance frequencies that are delivered deep into the tissue, treatments can help prevent the brain and central nervous system from finding ways to interrupt the upcoming neuron’s axonal action potential at the cellular/muscular level and assist the body to slow the disease processes. There is HOPE!
