Medical

These are medical drugs often used by patients with ALS or MND.

Medical and Medicine Terms

pharmacokinetics

The study of the metabolism and action of drugs with particular emphasis on the time required for absorption, duration of action, distribution in the body and method excretion.

striatum

Part of the basal ganglia, it is a large cluster of nerve cells, consisting of the caudate nucleus and the putamen, that controls movement, balance, and walking; the neurons of the striatum require dopamine to function.

stroke

Also called a "brain attack" and happens when brain cells die because of inadequate blood flow. 20% of cases are a hemorrhage in the brain caused by a rupture or leakage from a blood vessel. 80% of cases are also know as a "schemic stroke", or the formation of a blood clot in a vessel supplying blood to the brain.

Glutathione

Glutathione participates in leukotriene synthesis and is a cofactor for the enzyme glutathione peroxidase. Glutathione also acts as a hydrophilic molecule that is added to lipophilic toxins and waste in the liver during biotransformation before they can become part of the bile. Glutathione is needed for the detoxification of methylglyoxal, a toxin produced as a by-product of metabolism.

Action Tremors

Action tremors are tremors that increase when the hand or foot is moving voluntarily. Action tremors occur during any type of movement of an affected body part. There are several subclassifications of action tremors. A postural tremor occur when the person maintains a position against gravity, such as holding the arms outstretched.

SOD1 positive FALS

The copper-zinc SOD, or SOD1, is the first gene found to have mutations resulting in approximately twenty percent (20%) of Familian ALS (FALS), or approximately one to two (1-2%) of all ALS.

Spasticity

A state of increased muscle tension when the muscle is lengthened. Spasticity often involves an exaggeration of the tendon reflexes. In more details, spasticity is a feature of altered skeletal muscle performance in muscle tone involving hypertonia. Spasticity is also referred to as an unusual tightness, stiffness, or pull of muscles.

Biopsy

A diagnostic test in which a small amount of tissue or cells are removed from the body for microscopic examination. It is an accurate method of diagnosing many illnesses, including cancer. There are several types of biopsy:

Myelography

X-ray examination of the spinal cord, nerves, and other tissues within the spinal canal after injection of a contrast medium (a substance that is opaque to X-rays). Myelography is a type of radiographic examination that uses a contrast medium to detect pathology of the spinal cord, including the location of a spinal cord injury, cysts, and tumors.

Schwann cell

Schwann cells are involved in many important aspects of peripheral nerve biology. Schwann cells, also known as neurolemmocytes, are the principal glia of the peripheral nervous system. Named after the German physiologist Theodor Schwann, Schwann cells are a variety of glial cell that keep peripheral nerve fibres (both myelinated and unmyelinated) alive.

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