Diagnosing and treating ALS is complex. About 30,000 Americans suffer from ALS. The Eleanor and Lou Gehrig MDA/ALS Multidisciplinary Care Center sees approximately 300 new patients annually from the United States and abroad, each of whom presents a special set of needs.

Columbia University also specializes in the care of patients with Primary Lateral Sclerosis, and conducts research into the causes and treatment of PLS.

For ALS patients, quality of living is linked directly to the timeliness and appropriateness of the care they receive, beginning with diagnosis and continuing through each stage of ALS. If you or a loved one has ALS the Eleanor and Lou Gehrig MDA/ALS Multidisciplinary Care Center is prepared to help you.

The Center's ALS experts are able to offer patients state-of-the-art neurological evaluation diagnostics, multidisciplinary care and clinical tests. If ALS is diagnosed, the Center's multidisciplinary team, under the direction of Hiroshi Mitsumoto MD, creates a plan for comprehensive treatment in a compassionate setting that will address the patient's individual needs -- because each person with ALS is different.

Although it is not possible to erase the extreme muscle weakness of ALS patients, team members work to maintain and, sometimes, to restore muscle function and the ability to perform daily activities. ALS neurologists, nurse practitioners, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, nutritionists, pulmonologists and gastroenterologists collaborate to promote the highest functioning possible, support independence and maintain quality of life for patients throughout the course of their disease.

Click here for the Word Document (als_Web_Survey.doc)

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