In this first person narrative consisting of five pages the issues that surround what is more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease are examined. There are four bibliographic sources cited.
Name of Research Paper File: LM1_TLCGehri.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
the particulars of the disease and how we would go about addressing it, however, I wanted to know every possible aspect of what is also known as Lou Gehrigs disease
so that I may fully understand what was happening in and to my body. The first place I accessed online was the ALS
Association, where I was able to find comprehensive information about this motor neuron disease. I found that ALS is both progressive and degenerative, attacking my spinal and brain nerve
cells; because the brain, spine and nerves are interrelated throughout my body, it stands to reason that my muscles will ultimately degenerate, too. The worst part of all is
that this disease is fatal; long before that, however, I will become paralyzed, inasmuch as "when the motor neurons die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle
movement is lost" (ALSA, 2002). Interestingly and scary at the same time, my mind will likely remain sharp and unaffected while my body slowly deteriorates. Defined as a
lack of muscle nourishment and, therefore, causing scarring, ALS prevents nerve signals from being sent or received, which ultimately allows for the muscles to break down from involuntary inactivity.
I now recognize the increased muscle weakness in both my legs and arms, as well as difficulty talking, swallowing and breathing, as early signs of the disease. The diagnosis
procedure was long and involved; because there is no single definitive test to determine its presence, I had to undergo myriad types of tests in order to have a conclusive
diagnosis that included: * electrodiagnostic tests including electomyography (EMG) and nerve conduction velocity (NCV) * blood and urine studies including high resolution serum protein electrophoresis, thyroid and parathyroid